Ishan Kishan to lead East Zone, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi named vice-captain

India wicketkeeper-batter Ishan Kishan has been named the captain of the East Zone squad for the upcoming Duleep Trophy as Vaibhav Sooryavanshi will be his deputy.

The teenage sensation earned his India debut during the recent tour of the UK before starring in the subsequent T20I series against Zimbabwe, where he was named Player of the Series after an impressive all-round performance.

The East Zone squad also features experienced names such as Mohammed Shami, Abhimanyu Easwaran, Mukesh Kumar, Shahbaz Ahmed and Kumar Kushagra. The inter-zonal red-ball tournament is scheduled to begin on August 23 in Bengaluru.

Veteran pacer Shami, 35, has not represented India since the 2025 Champions Trophy final but remains active on the domestic circuit. He turned out for Bengal during the 2025-26 domestic season and also featured prominently for Lucknow Super Giants, playing 13 of their 14 matches in IPL 2026.

East Zone squad

Ishan Kishan (captain), Vaibhav Sooryavanshi (vice-captain), Abhimanyu Easwaran, Sudip Gharami, Mohammed Shami, Mukesh Kumar, Shahbaz Ahmed, Suraj Jaiswal, Virat Singh, Kumar Kushagra, Shikhar Mohan, Subranshu Senapati, Abhijit Sarkar, Anukul Roy and Denish Das.