Duleep Trophy 2026: Kotian, Mulani and Deshpande push for India Test spots
Tanush Kotian, Shams Mulani and Tushar Deshpande emerged as contenders for India’s Test team after notable performances in the Duleep Trophy 2026, which began on 23rd August in Indian domestic cricket. Their early displays have provided fresh options for national selectors as the domestic season opened.
The Duleep Trophy 2026 marked the start of a new domestic season and has seen several seasoned players return to red-ball action. The tournament is taking place at a time when Indian Test cricket is described as going through a phase of transition. It is being viewed as an important opportunity for domestic performers to press their case for selection to the red-ball side. Selectors are explicitly seeking young bowlers who can bowl consistently and offer different skill sets.
Early matches in the competition have already produced encouraging signs, with several pacers and spinners coming into the spotlight. Those performances followed a good show in the playoff round as teams vied for a semi-final spot. Playing against Indian internationals and experienced domestic players has given many youngsters a chance to demonstrate their suitability for higher honours.
Twenty-eight-year-old Tanush Kotian is identified as an intriguing spin-bowling all-rounder on the domestic circuit. The Mumbai-based off-spinner has been around the national setup on multiple occasions but is yet to make his debut for the Indian Test side. During the 2025-26 Ranji season Kotian claimed nine wickets, and he picked up eight wickets against South Africa A in late 2025. Playing for West Zone in the Duleep Trophy 2026, Kotian made an immediate statement with eight wickets in the fixture against West Zone and is now a strong contender for a spot in the Indian team, who are in the quest for a lower-order spin-bowling all-rounder.
Twenty-nine-year-old Shams Mulani has been one of Mumbai’s most consistent left-arm spinners in recent years in domestic cricket. In the 2025-26 Ranji Trophy season he took 30 wickets at an economy of 3.32 and also amassed 328 runs as a lower-order bowling all-rounder. Mulani was appointed the vice-captain of the West Zone for the 2026 Duleep Trophy. After being wicketless in the first innings, he delivered a four-wicket haul in the second innings of the Duleep Trophy fixture against North Zone.
Thirty-one-year-old Tushar Deshpande is the only pacer listed among the three candidates and has another opportunity to push his name into India’s Test conversation following a strong domestic record. The right-arm seamer from Mumbai has developed into a reliable wicket-taking option and can generate pace as well as movement with the new ball. In the Duleep Trophy 2026 opening game against North Zone, the West Zone pacer picked up a four-wicket haul in the first innings. Narendra Hirwani is the highest wicket-taker in Duleep Trophy history with 126 wickets, while Rajinder Goel is the all-time highest wicket-taker in Indian domestic first-class cricket (primarily the Ranji Trophy) with 750 career wickets.
For many players aiming to break into the Indian Test side, the Duleep Trophy is being treated as more than a domestic tournament and as a platform to show why they stand out from fellow performers. Strong showings here can strengthen a player’s case for India A selections and eventually a place in the senior Indian Test squad.