The Indian cricket team have started to assemble at the Board of Control for Cricket in India’s (BCCI) Centre of Excellence (CoE) in Bengaluru with only a few days remaining for the Men’s Asia Cup 2025.
The marquee continental tournament is scheduled to be played in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in T20 format from September 9 to 28.
Amidst this, star Indian batter Tilak Varma, who has been named in the 15-member squad has been confirmed to miss the remainder of Duleep Trophy tournament due to national commitments. Varma, who plays for Hyderabad in domestic cricket, was slated to lead the South Zone in the semi-finals.
Mohammed Azharuddeen to lead South Zone in Duleep Trophy 2025
But as the squad was announced prior to the Asia Cup squad announcement, Tilak Varma retained his place. But now, the South Zone has named his replacement in Ankit Sharma. Meanwhile, Kerala’s Mohammed Azharuddeen will now be leading the side afer he was initially named the vice-captain.
Moreover, R Sai Kishore is also set to miss the semi-finals as he recovers from a hand injury. In his absence, the South Zone have named Shaik Rasheed as his replacement. Notably, the South Zone is scheduled to miss North Zone in the semi-final from September 4 to 7 at the CoE in Bengaluru. Whereas, the Central Zone will lock horns with West Zone in the second semi-final and the winners of these two clashes will faceoff in the final from September 11 to 15.
