Siraj, Padikkal, Rahul asked to turn out for Duleep final

KL Rahul, Devdutt Padikkal and Mohammed Siraj have been asked to play the Duleep Trophy final for South Zone against East Zone in Chennai. Head coach Gautam Gambhir will decide on Tilak Varma, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi and Ishan Kishan’s participation

New Delhi:  Veteran opener KL Rahul, Sri Lanka series hero Devdutt Padikkal and seasoned pacer Mohammed Siraj have been asked to play the Duleep Trophy final for South Zone against East Zone, starting September 6 in Chennai.

It is understood that the participation of South Zone skipper Tilak Varma, rising sensation Vaibhav Sooryavanshi and wicketkeeper Ishan Kishan, all of whom are in India’s T20I team, will depend on approval from Team India head coach Gautam Gambhir.

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“Rahul, Padikkal and Siraj do not have any competitive cricket right now. The national selectors want any India player who is available to play the Duleep Trophy final. The trio played last on August 27. The next time they will play is September 27 against West Indies in the ODIs.

“Now Padikkal is not a part of ODIs, so he might play the India A series. But if there is a chance to play the Duleep final, they should play,” a BCCI source privy to the development told PTI on condition of anonymity.

In the case of Sooryavanshi, Kishan and Tilak, it will be coach Gambhir’s prerogative.

“The Indian team will assemble in Delhi on either September 9 or 10. If the head coach wants all three to report as per the T20I team’s itinerary, then the trio can’t play. But if the head coach wants them to play the final and report to Delhi on September 10 late in the evening, they can also do that,” the source added.

Chairman of selectors Agarkar to watch Duleep final

Even as the mystery surrounding his impending extension remains after he was excused from the all-important BCCI review meeting due to family commitments, chairman of selectors Ajit Agarkar will be in Chennai to watch the Duleep Trophy final.

As of now, his contract ends on October 4, and it will be interesting to see whether BCCI secretary Devajit Saikia discusses the matter of his extension with him.

BCCI applies for Japanese visas for Mayank, Kartik, Mohsin

The BCCI is planning to send Mayank Yadav, Kartik Tyagi and left-arm pacer Mohsin Khan to the Asian Games in Japan to assist the Indian team’s training sessions as net bowlers, following a specific request from head coach VVS Laxman.

It has been a practice for the BCCI to take net bowlers, and the trio are proven T20 performers.

“They are not part of the official Indian contingent and will only be there until the Indian men play their first game on September 26, provided the BCCI can arrange their Japanese visas on time before the team departs from Delhi on September 20,” the source added.