Nagpur, Dec 19: All-rounder Harsh Dubey was on Friday named captain of the 17-member Vidarbha side for the 50-over Vijay Hazare Trophy starting on December 24.
Vidarbha are placed in Elite Group B along with Assam, Uttar Pradesh, Chandigarh, Jammu and Kashmir, Hyderabad, Bengal and Baroda.
The last year’s runner-up Vidarbha will take on Bengal in their opening match on the first day of the tournament.
The group stage will be held in Ahmedabad, Rajkot, Jaipur and Bengaluru, while the knockouts will be played at the Centre of Excellence in Bengaluru from January 12-18.With the scars of last season’s final defeat still fresh, Vidarbha will head into the Vijay Hazare Trophy carrying both confidence and unfinished business.
The appointment of Harsh Dubey signals a shift towards a younger leadership group, but one backed by depth, balance and familiarity across departments.
A competitive Elite Group B will test Vidarbha’s consistency early, particularly against traditional heavyweights like Bengal, Uttar Pradesh and Baroda, yet the squad possesses enough experience in domestic white-ball cricket to navigate the long league phase. As the action moves across multiple venues before culminating in Bengaluru, Vidarbha’s ability to adapt quickly, handle pressure moments and peak during the knockouts could ultimately decide whether this campaign ends as another near-miss or a long-awaited title run.
Squad: Harsh Dubey (c), Yash Thakur (vc), Atharva Taide, Dhruv Shorey, Aman Mokhade, Yash Rathod, Shivam Deshmukh (wk), Akshay Wadkar, Nachiket Bhute, Darshan Nalkande, R Samarth, Parth Rekhade, Dipesh Parwani, Praful Hinge, Shubham Dubey, Ganesh Bhosle. (PTI)
