Rishabh Pant to lead Rest of India in Irani Cup
What's the story
The Rest of India squad for the upcoming Irani Cup 2026 has been announced. Wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant has been appointed as the captain of the team. The match will be played between Ranji Trophy champions Jammu and Kashmir and Rest of India from October 1-5 in Srinagar. Pant was recently seen in the Sri Lanka vs India Test series last month. Here are further details on the same.
Schedule clash
Pant misses out on ODI team selection for WI series
The Irani Cup 2026-27 will be played at the same time as the Asian Games and India's ODI series against West Indies.
This means several top players will be unavailable for selection.
Despite these challenges, Pant has been given the responsibility to lead Rest of India in this prestigious tournament.
Notably, Pant didn't find a place in India's 15-member ODI squad for the Windies series.
Dhruv Jurel was named ahead of him with KL Rahul being the vice-captain and the primary wicketkeeper.
Team composition
Sarfaraz Khan named as ROI vice-captain; Suthar and Saransh included
The Rest of India squad for the Irani Cup 2026 also includes Sarfaraz Khan as vice-captain.
Sarfaraz was added to India's Test squad for the Sri Lanka series as a replacement for Sai Sudharsan.
It's a big opportunity for Sarfaraz to shine in the Irani Cup and show selectors his prowess.
Manav Suthar and Saransh Jain, who was part of the Sri Lanka series, have also been added to the squad.
Information
Rest of India squad for Irani Cup 2026
ROI squad: Rishabh Pant [c/wk], Sanat Sangwan, Shikhar Mohan, Sudip Gharami, Sarfaraz Khan [vc], Smaran Ravichandran, Manav Suthar, Saransh Jain, Akash Deep*, Mukesh Kumar, Mukesh Choudhary, Aryan Juyal [wk], Aryan Pandey, Anukul Roy, Ayush Doseja.