Vaibhav Sooryavanshi named Bihar’s captain for Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy (SMAT) 2026

The 15-year-old, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, has been named Bihar’s captain for the upcoming 20-over domestic competition, Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, which will be his first assignment in the game, though he has the previous experience of being the vice-captain of the side in the Ranji Trophy and for East Zone in the Duleep Trophy.  

Sooryavanshi, who recently featured in the couple of T20Is during the recently concluded five-match series against New Zealand, led the East Zone side when the team’s captain, Ishan Kishan, was off the field briefly in the Duleep Trophy 2026 final in Chennai in September. 

Vaibhav Sooryavanshi appointed Bihar captain for SMAT 2026: What we know about the appointment

The Bihar Cricket Association (BCA) has picked up the squad through a meeting, which was held on November 06. It won’t be an easy time for the youngster, who will be tasting this pressure and responsibility for the very first time in his career. Bihar’s opening game of the event will be against Saurashtra in Indore.

The availability of the pacer Sakib Hussain, who turned heads during the 2025 season of the Indian Premier League (IPL), for the SMAT 2026/27 is subject to fitness. The 21-year-old fast bowler hasn’t played any game since his stint with the Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) earlier this year.

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Bihar had a very tough start to the domestic season of India, having lost all four of their games in the first phase of the Ranji Trophy 2026/27. They will aim to turn things around under Sooryavanshi in the beginning of their campaign on November 14.

Bihar’s squad for Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy (SMAT) 2026/27-

Vaibhav Sooryavanshi (captain), Alok Kumar, Ayush Loharuka (w.k), Altamish Ashraf, Tarun Kumar Singh, Anmol Kumar (w.k), Prithvi Raj, Suraj Kashyap (vice-captain), Mayank Kumar, Raghavendra Pratap, Ashish Kumar, Vasudev Prasad Singh, Mohammad Izhar, Amol Yadav, Prashant Singh, Nawaz Khan, Himanshu Singh

How Vaibhav Sooryavanshi has performed in T20s: Runs, strike Rate and key innings

Sooryavanshi has played 44 T20s so far, of which seven have come for the Bihar side. In the previous season of the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, the left-handed batter smashed a fine knock of unbeaten 108 runs off 61 balls against the Maharashtra side at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata.

The southpaw has only a little game-time for India in New Zealand last month, scoring 4 and 45 in the couple of innings during the T20I series against the Kiwis. He has an explosive partnership with Abhishek Sharma, including the record 118 runs inside the first six overs, at the Hnry Stadium in Wellington.

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Sooryavanshi had a stunning IPL 2026 for the Rajasthan Royals, where he smacked 776 runs in 16 innings at an average of 48.50 and a blistering strike rate of 237.30 with five fifties and one century.