BCCI left red-faced as South Zone rejects order to include KL Rahul & others in Duleep Trophy squad

In a surprising move, the South Zone selectors have landed themselves in trouble by going against the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). They have openly defied the BCCI’s policy to include centrally contracted players in their squad for the Duleep Trophy 2025.

Big names like KL Rahul, Mohammed Siraj, Washington Sundar, Sai Sudharsan, and Prasidh Krishna, who were all part of India’s Test tour of England, have been overlooked for the Duleep Trophy 2025 despite not being part of the Asia Cup 2025 squad.

South Zone selectors take bold stand against BCCI diktat

The South Zone selectors have made it clear that they won’t add KL Rahul, Mohammed Siraj, Washington Sundar, Sai Sudharsan, and Prasidh Krishna to the Duleep Trophy 2025 squad, as they don’t want to be unfair to the domestic stars.

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The BCCI had sent out its instructions weeks ago, expecting all zones to follow, but the South Zone has chosen a different path. Instead of following the BCCI’s directives, they are sticking with the squad they named in July, with Tilak Varma as the only centrally contracted player in the side.

South Zone officials believe that Ranji Trophy performers deserve their chance to play in the Duleep Trophy, and if the BCCI wants to see the top stars in domestic cricket, then they should mandate their participation in the Ranji Trophy or use India A matches to test them.

Why didn't KL Rahul, Mohammed Siraj, and other Indian stars make it to the Duleep Trophy 2025 squad?

A South Zone official was quoted by Cricbuzz as saying, “Kerala qualified for the Ranji Trophy final (for the first time in the history of 90 editions of the competition) and lost by a very narrow margin. They had a great season, and their players deserved to be selected for the Duleep Trophy. If Indian players are included in the team, most of the Kerala players will not find a place in the regional team.”

Meanwhile, South Zone’s 15-member squad features four from Kerala, three from Hyderabad, two each from Andhra, Tamil Nadu, and Karnataka, and one each from Pondicherry and Goa.

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Other zones draft India stars for Duleep Trophy 2025

While other zones have followed the BCCI instructions, Central Zone drafted in Kuldeep Yadav, East Zone called up Mohammed Shami and Ishan Kishan, West Zone named Yashasvi Jaiswal and Shreyas Iyer, and North Zone picked Shubman Gill in their squads, but the South Zone has openly challenged the board. However, Gill is ruled out of the tournament due to his illness.

As runners-up of the last edition, the South Zone have already qualified for the Duleep Trophy 2025 semifinal, starting September 4. With travel and accommodation plans finalized, officials are not ready for the U-turn. Lakshmipathy Balaji will be the South Zone head coach for the competition.

South Zone Squad for Duleep Trophy 2025:

Tilak Varma (C), Mohammed Azharuddeen (VC/WK), N Jagadeesan (WK), Tanmay Agarwal, Devdutt Padikkal, Mohit Kale, Salman Nizar, T Vijay, R Sai Kishore, Tanay Thyagarajan, Vyshak Vijaykumar, MD Nidheesh, Ricky Bhui, Basil NP, Gurjapneet Singh, Snehal Kauthankar.