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Gill and Jurel do not make it to the Duleep Trophy quarter-finals
Gill and Jurel do not make it to the Duleep Trophy quarter-finals
Duleep Trophy 2025: India Test captain Shubman Gill missed the 2025–26 season-opening Duleep Trophy quarterfinal against East Zone.
Shubman Gill has missed North Zone’s opening match of the 2025–26 Duleep Trophy against East Zone, which began on August 28 at the BCCI’s Centre of Excellence in Bengaluru. Gill was originally named captain of the North Zone side, but an illness has kept him out of the quarter-final. He is expected to arrive in Bengaluru later this week before heading to Abu Dhabi for the Asia Cup, which begins on September 9. In Gill’s absence, Haryana batter Ankit Kumar is leading the North Zone team, while Services player Shubham Rohilla has been added to the squad as Gill’s replacement.
Central Zone also faced a last-minute change, with wicketkeeper-batter Dhruv Jurel ruled out due to a groin niggle. Jurel was set to captain the side in their quarter-final against the North East Zone. Rajat Patidar, who was initially named vice-captain, has taken over leadership duties. The Central Zone playing XI features notable names like Khaleel Ahmed, Deepak Chahar, and Kuldeep Yadav.
East Zone suffered a setback too, as regular captain Abhimanyu Easwaran was ruled out with a fever. Allrounder Riyan Parag is now captaining the team in their opening match of the tournament.
Gill comes into the domestic season after a phenomenal tour of England, where he scored 754 runs in five Tests at an average of 75.40 in his first series as India’s Test captain. He has also been named vice-captain of India’s T20I squad for the upcoming Asia Cup. Alongside Gill, North Zone features two other Asia Cup-bound players Harshit Rana and Arshdeep Singh who are expected to bowl later in the match.
The Duleep Trophy semi-finals will be played on September 4, and the final is scheduled for September 11, all at the BCCI’s Centre of Excellence in Bengaluru.