Ruturaj Gaikwad appointed captain of West Zone for Duleep Trophy

India's opening batsman Ruturaj Gaikwad has been named captain of the West Zone squad for the upcoming Duleep Trophy, which will run from August 23 to September 10 at the BCCI Centre of Excellence in Bengaluru. Shams Mulani, the experienced left‑arm spin bowling all‑rounder, will serve as vice‑captain. The 15‑member squad includes wicket‑keepers Harvik Desai and Urvil Patel, batsmen Prithvi Shaw, Sarfaraz Khan and Musheer Khan, as well as spin options Tanush Kotian and Siddharth Desai. The pace attack features Shardul Thakur, Tushar Deshpande and Mukesh Chaudhary, among others. Gaikwad, who also captains the IPL side Chennai Super Kings, will look to bolster his case for a Test debut. A six‑player standby list – Jay Gohil, Aarya Desai, Arshin Kulkarni, Mahesh Pithiya, Vishal Jayswal and Rajvardhan Hangargekar – has also been announced.