India spinner Varun Chakravarthy has been appointed as the new Tamil Nadu captain for the upcoming 2025-26 Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, starting on November 26. Narayan Jagadeesan has been named the vice-captain. This marks Varun’s first-ever leadership role at any level of cricket.
Varun comes into the tournament after a strong performance in India’s recent T20I series win in Australia, where he picked up five wickets in three completed games. His consistent displays and growing influence in the T20 format played a key part in him replacing M Shahrukh Khan as captain. The selectors chose him ahead of R Sai Kishore and Jagadeesan, both of whom have prior captaincy experience.
The squad also features experienced left-arm seamer T Natarajan, who returns to strengthen the pace attack, along with fellow left-arm quick Gurjapneet Singh. The team’s spin department will be led by Sai Kishore and M Siddharth, giving Tamil Nadu a strong set of slow-bowling options.
Tamil Nadu have had a mixed run in the current Ranji Trophy, sitting sixth in their group with two draws and two losses in four matches. They will hope the change in leadership brings renewed energy and better results in the T20 competition.
In the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, Tamil Nadu are placed in Elite Group D, which includes Rajasthan, Delhi, Uttarakhand, Karnataka, Tripura, Jharkhand and Saurashtra. They begin their campaign against Rajasthan in Ahmedabad.
Tamil Nadu squad:
Varun Chakravarthy (capt), Narayan Jagadeesan (vice-capt, wk), Tushar Raheja (wk), VP Amit Sathvik, M Shahrukh Khan, Andre Siddarth, Pradosh Ranjan Paul, Shivam Singh, R Sai Kishore, M Siddharth, T Natarajan, Gurjapneet Singh, A Esakkimuthu, R Sonu Yadav, R Silambarasan, S Rithik Easwaran (wk)
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