Rishabh Pant to lead Rest of India against Jammu and Kashmir in Irani Cup next month

Rishabh Pant will lead a strong Rest of India side against Ranji Trophy champions Jammu and Kashmir in the Irani Cup.

Rishabh Pant will lead a strong Rest of India side against Ranji Trophy champions Jammu and Kashmir in the Irani Cup, with the five-day first-class clash scheduled to be played in Srinagar from October 1 to 5.

Rishabh Pant has a good cricketing brain. (PTI)

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) announced the ROI squad, in which Pant has been named captain of the 15-member squad, while Sarfaraz Khan will be his deputy. Pacer Akash Deep has also been included, subject to fitness clearance.

Deep Dive

Why is Rishabh Pant leading the Rest of India in the Irani Cup?

What does Rishabh Pant's leadership in the Irani Cup mean for his future prospects in ODIs?

Who are the notable players included in the Rest of India squad for the Irani Cup?

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The Irani Cup will see Jammu and Kashmir, who won their maiden Ranji Trophy title in the 2025-26 season, take on a Rest of India side comprising players from other domestic teams.

The match will be played at the Sher-e-Kashmir Stadium in Srinagar. The Rest of India squad also includes Sanat Sangwan, Shikhar Mohan, Sudip Gharami, Smaran Ravichandran, Manav Suthar, Saransh Jain, Akash Deep, Mukesh Kumar, Mukesh Choudhary, Aryan Juyal, Aryan Pandey, Anukul Roy and Ayush Doseja.

Meanwhile, another injury concern for Varun!

BCCI’s men’s selection committee also announced changes to India's squad for the upcoming Japan T20I and Asian Games, with spinner Varun Chakaravarthy ruled out due to a side strain.

Chakaravarthy suffered the injury during the first T20I against Afghanistan in Delhi and has subsequently been ruled out of both the one-off Japan T20I and the Asian Games.

Leg-spin all-rounder Vipraj Nigam has been named as his replacement and will receive his maiden international call-up.

Nigam first made his mark during IPL 2025 for Delhi Capitals, taking 11 wickets in 14 matches and scoring 142 runs at a strike rate of 179.74.

He had a quieter IPL 2026 campaign, with two wickets and 15 runs in five matches, but impressed for India A during the one-day tri-series in Sri Lanka in June. Nigam took seven wickets in five matches and scored 116 runs at a strike rate of 126.08.

Meanwhile, Nitish Kumar Reddy, who was originally included in the Asian Games squad, has been withdrawn from the continental event and will instead feature in India's ODI series against the West Indies.

His replacement in the Asian Games squad has not yet been announced, with India set to travel to Japan with 14 players.