Soon after IPL 2026 mini-auction, Venkatesh Iyer has received a major leadership role, signalling that faith in his abilities remains strong despite an underwhelming IPL 2025 campaign.
The all-rounder has been appointed captain of the Madhya Pradesh side for 2025-26 Vijay Hazare Trophy, country’s premier domestic one-day tournament, which is set to begin on December 24.
At the IPL 2026 auction, Iyer attracted significant interest from multiple franchises. Royal Challengers Bangalore eventually secured his services for ₹7 crore, outbidding Gujarat Titans, Lucknow Super Giants, and his former franchise Kolkata Knight Riders, who pushed the bidding up to ₹6.80 crore before bowing out.
Venkatesh Iyer takes charge
Venkatesh Iyer will lead Madhya Pradesh in the Vijay Hazare Trophy, replacing Rajat Patidar as captain.
Patidar, who guided RCB to IPL 2025 title, also oversaw strong performances by Madhya Pradesh in the Ranji Trophy and the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. Given those results, his absence from the squad has come as a surprise to many.
Madhya Pradesh reached the Super League stage of the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy earlier this season but failed to progress to the final. Iyer featured in 10 matches during the tournament, scoring 211 runs.
The upcoming Vijay Hazare Trophy is expected to feature several high-profile names, with Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, and Rishabh Pant among the Indian stars set to take part.
Madhya Pradesh squad for Vijay Hazare Trophy 2025-26: Venkatesh Iyer (captain), Harsh Gawli, Himanshu Mantri, Yash Dubey, Shubham Sharma, Harpreet Singh, Rishabh Chauhan, Ritik Tada, Kumar Kartikeya, Saransh Jain, Shivang Kumar, Aryan Pandey, Rahul Batham, Tripuresh Singh, Mangesh Yadav, Madhav Tiwari.
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