The senior Indian men’s domestic season 2025–26 moves into its List A phase with the Vijay Hazare Trophy (VHT) set to begin on Wednesday, December 24. As India’s most prestigious domestic 50-over competition, the tournament offers the country’s finest talents a crucial platform to push for national selection.
The Vijay Hazare Trophy will be played across Elite and Plate divisions, with 32 state teams competing in the Elite groups for the coveted title.
Vijay Hazare Trophy Elite 2025–26: Teams in Contention
Defending champions Karnataka and last season’s runners-up Vidarbha headline a strong field that includes:
Mumbai, Madhya Pradesh, Baroda, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Bengal, Saurashtra, Andhra, Chandigarh, Gujarat, Rajasthan, Kerala, Jammu & Kashmir, Punjab, Jharkhand, Railways, Hyderabad, Haryana, Assam, Maharashtra, Himachal Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Chhattisgarh, Goa, Services, Uttarakhand, Odisha, Pondicherry and Tripura.
Vijay Hazare Trophy 2025–26: Tournament Format
- Teams will play each group opponent once in the league stage
- Top two teams from each Elite group advance to the knockouts
- Knockout rounds include quarter-finals, semi-finals and final
- The worst-performing Elite team across all groups will be relegated
- The Plate division winner earns promotion to the Elite group next season
Vijay Hazare Trophy 2025–26: Live Telecast & Streaming
- Live TV: Select Elite matches on Star Sports Network
- Live Streaming: All major matches available on the Jio Hotstar app and website
Key Squads to Watch – Vijay Hazare Trophy 2025–26
Punjab
Shubman Gill, Abhishek Sharma, Arshdeep Singh, Prabhsimran Singh (WK), Harnoor Pannu, Anmolpreet Singh, Uday Saharan, Naman Dhir, Harpreet Brar, Ramandeep Singh, Gurnoor Brar, Raghu Sharma, among others.
Maharashtra
Ruturaj Gaikwad (C), Prithvi Shaw, Rahul Tripathi, Anket Bawane, Vicky Ostwal, Jalaj Saxena, Rajvardhan Hangargekar, Pradeep Dadhe.
Bengal
Abhimanyu Easwaran (C), Shahbaz Ahmed, Mohammed Shami, Akash Deep, Mukesh Kumar, Anustup Majumdar, Abishek Porel (WK).
Karnataka
Mayank Agarwal (C), Devdutt Padikkal, Karun Nair, KL Rahul, Prasidh Krishna, Shreyas Gopal, Abhinav Manohar.
Andhra
Nitish Kumar Reddy (C), KS Bharat (WK), Ricky Bhui, Ashwin Hebbar, Shaikh Rasheed.
Vidarbha
Harsh Dubey (C), Atharva Taide, Yash Thakur, Dhruv Shorey, Darshan Nalkande.
Delhi
Rishabh Pant (C), Virat Kohli, Ishant Sharma, Navdeep Saini, Nitish Rana, Yash Dhull, Ayush Badoni.
Jharkhand
Ishan Kishan (C & WK), Virat Singh, Anukul Roy, Kumar Kushagra, Sushant Mishra.
Kerala
Rohan S Kunnummal (C), Sanju Samson, Vishnu Vinod, Mohammed Azharuddeen, Baba Aparajith.
Mumbai
Shardul Thakur (C), Rohit Sharma (first two matches), Sarfaraz Khan, Musheer Khan, Shams Mulani, Tanush Kotian.
Big Names Confirm Availability
- Rishabh Pant will lead Delhi, with Virat Kohli available for select matches
- Rohit Sharma will feature in Mumbai’s first two games
- Ishant Sharma, Navdeep Saini and Harshit Rana have also confirmed participation
- Several senior players will miss parts of the tournament due to international commitments ahead of India’s ODI series against New Zealand starting January 11, 2026
Why Vijay Hazare Trophy 2025–26 Matters
With national selectors closely monitoring performances, the tournament could prove decisive for players aiming to secure spots in India’s ODI and Test squads. The presence of established stars alongside emerging talents promises high-quality competition throughout the season.