For the Uttar Pradesh team, Rinku Singh has been appointed as the captain. He has taken the position of Bhuvneshwar Kumar who led Uttar Pradesh in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy that finished before. 

This would be Rinku’s first time when he will take over the captaincy at a state level. Earlier this year, he successfully led the Meerut Mavericks to victory in the UPT20 League, amassing 210 runs in nine innings with a strike rate of 161.54, primarily functioning as a finisher.

Rinku said "Leading the Meerut Mavericks in the UPT20 League was a great opportunity for me, and I’m pleased I could contribute. I thoroughly enjoyed the experience of captaincy, as it taught me many valuable lessons."

In addition to his batting, Rinku experimented with off-spin bowling during the UPT20 League. He noted, "Modern cricket requires a well-rounded player—someone who can bat, bowl, and field. I'm now concentrating on improving my bowling. As the captain of Uttar Pradesh, I have a larger role to fulfill, and I’m ready for the challenge."

His elevation to a captaincy in the UP team coincides with the Kolkata Knight Riders, his IPL franchise, contemplating their captaincy choices for the upcoming season. Rinku has been part of the KKR lineup since 2018 and was retained before the mega auction in November, along with players like Sunil Narine, Andre Russell, Varun Chakravarthy, and Ramandeep Singh.

Regarding KKR's captaincy, Rinku stated, "I’m not overly concerned about that right now. My main focus is on my responsibilities with Uttar Pradesh, and I aim for my team to reclaim the trophy we first won in the 2015-16 season."

The Vijay Hazare Trophy will serve as a platform for national selectors as they look to finalize India's ODI squad for the Champions Trophy in February. While Rinku has become a fixture in the Indian T20I team, he has only played two ODIs since making his debut in South Africa a year ago.

Rinku's statistics in List A cricket are noteworthy, with 1,899 runs scored in 52 innings at an impressive average of 48.69 and a strike rate of 94.8, which includes one century and 17 fifties. Nevertheless, Rinku does not view the Vijay Hazare Trophy as merely an audition for the Indian team.

"I have faith in God," he remarked. "When I hit five consecutive sixes in the IPL last year, I never imagined it would lead me to the national team. That moment changed everything for me. I still believe that if something is meant to happen to me, it will. But I also recognise the need to work hard on my craft."

Uttar Pradesh will kick off their tournament against Jammu and Kashmir on December 21, followed by matches against Mizoram (December 23), Tamil Nadu (December 26), Chhattisgarh (December 28), Chandigarh (December 31), and Vidarbha (January 3).