In a breakthrough moment for young Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, the 15-year-old left-handed opener has been named the Bihar captain for the first two games of the upcoming Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2026.
The selection committee of the Bihar Cricket Association (BCA) announced the Bihar squad for the SMAT 2026 following their meeting on November 6, Friday.
The Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy is the BCCI’s premier domestic T20 tournament.
When is the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2026?
The SMAT 2026 will kick off on November 14, and the final is scheduled for December 6.
The BCA had conducted trials from November 4 to 6. As per Cricinfo, the selectors took into “account the players’ performances in the trials as well as their past performances before finalising the squad for the opening two matches.”
Why is Vaibhav Sooryavanshi named Bihar captain and not Ishan Kishan?
With the SMAT starting on November 14, Kishan will be in New Zealand with the ODI squad, as the India vs New Zealand ODI series concludes on November 15. In Kishan’s absence, Sooryavanshi will be leading Bihar in the first two matches of the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy.
This is the first time that Vaibhav will be officially captaining a team at the domestic level. Previously, in September, he was the vice-captain of the East Zone in the Duleep Trophy final in Chennai. In that fixture, when Kishan was off the field, Sooryavanshi briefly commanded the reins of the East Zone.
But Sooryavanshi is not untested as a skipper. In January earlier this year, he led the India U-19 in the opening match of the three-match Youth ODI series in Benoni, when he became the youngest player to captain in Youth ODIs. Then, Sooryavanshi was also the vice-captain of the India U-19 side that won the U-19 World Cup in Harare.
Harsh Vardhan, the BCA President, lent his support to Sooryavanshi, opining that leading Bihar in the SMAT this year will help him grow as a cricketer.
“Vaibhav has already demonstrated tremendous talent, confidence, and maturity at a young age, and this responsibility will provide him with another opportunity to grow as a cricketer and leader. We are hopeful that under Vaibhav’s leadership, the team will deliver a disciplined, competitive, and effective performance while representing the state in the upcoming season,” Vardhan was quoted by NDTV.
Meanwhile, fast bowler Sakib Hussain, who was impressive during the IPL this year, is under a fitness cloud, and his participation is subject to getting clearance.
Sooryavanshi returned from New Zealand after featuring in two matches in the five-match T20I series when Kishan was injured.
While he managed only four runs in Christchurch, the 15-year-old showed his prowess in Wellington with a 19-ball 45, smoking four sixes and as many fours. He formed a stunning opening partnership of 133 runs off 7.1 overs with Abhishek Sharma, who went on to slam a ton, as India gunned down 199 in only 13.2 overs.
Bihar squad for SMAT 2026:
Vaibhav Sooryavanshi (C), Alok Kumar, Ashish Kumar, Altamish Ashraf, Anmol Kumar (wk), Prashant Singh, Nawaz Khan, Ayush Loharuka (wk), Prithvi Raj, Suraj Kashyap (vice-capt), Tarun Kumar Singh, Vasudev Prasad Singh, Mohammad Izhar, Amol Yadav, Mayank Kumar, Raghavendra Pratap, Himanshu Singh
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