Duleep Trophy: South Zone unlikely to call up stalwarts in the squad despite BCCI's ire

The upcoming domestic season will see the Duleep Trophy returning to its traditional zonal format. The upcoming edition of the domestic tournament is slated to kick off on 28 August. However, the South Zone squad has come under fire ahead of the season's start. Time and again, the BCCI has reiterated its stance on the importance of playing domestic cricket for all Indian players. The mandate, imposed more sternly in recent times, applies to centrally contracted players as well. Amid the BCCI's rock-hard stance, the state association responsible for forming the South Zone squad ignored national players during selection.

South Zone stands firm on Duleep Trophy squad despite BCCI's reminder

The BCCI took notice of the South Zone squad curated for the upcoming edition of the Duleep Trophy. The group notably missed significant names like KL Rahul, Mohammed Siraj, Washington Sundar, and Sai Sudharsan, among others. All the listed players wrapped up the five-match India vs England Test series earlier this year. Meanwhile, with the India cricket schedule on a break for over a month, the national players were available for selection for the domestic tournament. However, the state association still ignored the national players, in turn, facing the BCCI's ire.

The latest update now reports that despite the BCCI's reminder to select the centrally contracted players, South Zone is unlikely to rectify its move. The BCCI recently sent an email to the state association, asking the responsible authorities to include the national players in the squad. However, the officials have reportedly opted to ignore the directive of the apex board.

The latest report suggests that South Zone representatives have decided to move ahead with the squad named on July 26, with Tilak Varma, the only centrally contracted player, leading the side. The officials further emphasized that the responsibility of choosing squads for zonal tournaments rests with the respective selectors, not the national panel. They have instead recommended that senior players be accommodated in the India A setup rather than in the Duleep Trophy squad.

"Kerala qualified for the Ranji Trophy final (for the first time in the competition's 90-edition history) and lost it narrowly. They had a remarkable season, and their players deserved selection for the Duleep Trophy," a South Zone official was quoted as saying in the report.