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Tilak Varma has been named as the captain of the South Zone team for the Duleep Trophy 2026-27 season. Andhra Pradesh veteran Ricky Bhui has been named as Tilak's deputy for the tournament.
The South Zone announced its full squad on Saturday, with Tilak Varma as the team leader. It will be his back-to-back leadership stints, as he was the vice-captain of the India National Cricket Team during the T20I series against Zimbabwe.
South Zone assembled a well-balanced batting combination for the Duleep Trophy 2026-27 season
With multiple experienced and emerging candidates, the South Zone has formed a well-balanced squad for the tournament. They were one of the finalists in the previous season, so expectations will be high on them in this edition. With the presence of proven batters like Karun Nair, Tilak Varma, Ricky Bhui, Samaran Ravichandran, and Narayan Jagadeeshan, the team looks strong on paper.
While Varma and Jagadeeshan are well capable of scoring runs with a good strike rate, Nair, Ravichandran, and Bhui are expected to play long-standing knocks for the team. The previous domestic season had a significant impact on Jagadeeshan and Ravichandran. They will try to continue the same form from the beginning of another domestic season.
The Duleep Trophy marks the beginning of the 2026-27 domestic season in India. The Duleep Trophy 2026-27 matches will begin on August 23 and will continue till September 10. All of the matches in the tournament will be held in Bengaluru at the Board of Control for Cricket in India's (BCCI) Centre of Excellence.
Eyes will be on the experienced batter Karun Nair
This year's Duleep Trophy will be special as it is set to replace the old divisional format, with a total of six teams participating. As South Zone was the finalists in the previous season, they will start their campaign on August 30 in the semifinal, while the zonal competition begins on August 23.
Karun Nair can be seen playing a crucial role as an out-of-favor Indian batter, last playing for the India National Cricket Team in a Test during the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy the previous year.
Since then, the batter who has a triple hundred in Tests has remained out of the team. Because of the demands of modern-day cricket, like many batters, Nair also modifies his batting style, adding more flair to score runs at a quick pace. His batting approach will be interesting to see in the upcoming domestic season.
Tilak Varma will want to redeem his form
Tilak Varma will also want to do his best with the new responsibilities. In the recent tournament with the national team, his performance was under the scanner because of a lack of consistency. The Duleep Trophy will be an ideal stage for him to regain his form, as India is set for a packed schedule in the remainder of 2026.
South Zone squad for Duleep Trophy 2026-27: Tilak Varma (captain), Ricky Bhui (vice-captain), Abhinav Tejrana, SK Rashid, K Himteja, R Smaran, N Jagadeesan, Karun Nair, T Thyagarajan, Shreyas Gopal, K Sai Teja, T Vijay, V Kavirappa and Aman Khan.
