Rinku Singh, a middle-order batter, will serve as vice-captain, with Patidar leading the team after guiding Royal Challengers Bengaluru to two IPL championships.
Off-spinner Saransh Jain has also made the squad, but he is likely to miss the early part of the domestic season opener as he is included in India’s Test squad for the Sri Lanka tour.
Jain is being considered for a potential Test debut in Galle following the exclusion of off-spin all-rounder Washington Sundar from the first Test.
The first Test against Sri Lanka is set to begin on August 15 at the Galle International Stadium, with the second Test slated to start in Colombo from August 23.
Central Zone squad for Duleep Trophy:
Rajat Patidar (captain), Rinku Singh (vice-captain), Aryan Juyal (wicketkeeper), Saransh Jain, Aman Mokhade, Kunal Chandela, Zeeshan Ansari, Aryan Pandey, Arshad Khan, Ayush Pandey, Yash Rathod, Harsh Dubey, Kunal Singh Rathod (wk), Yash Thakur, and Nachiket Bhute.
Stand-by players:
Amandeep Khare, Mayank Mishra, Saurabh Rawat, Bhargav Merai, Kunal Yadav, and Kumar Kartikeya.
