Ahead of the upcoming limited-overs series against South Africa, big news has emerged regarding star player Sanju Samson. Sanju has been appointed captain for the upcoming domestic tournament, the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. Kerala recently announced its squad for this important tournament. Before IPL 2026, Sanju Samson will be seen making waves in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. Sanju will aim to perform well as a captain and batsman in this tournament.
Sanju Samson named captain for SMAT 2025 tournament
Sanju Samson’s brother, Sally Samson, has also been included in Kerala’s squad for the Syed Mushtaq Trophy. The two brothers previously played together in the Kerala Cricket League. Sally Samson captained the Kochi Blue Tigers in Season 2 of the Kerala Cricket League. He performed well as a batsman and captain in that tournament.
In addition to the Samson brothers, Ahmed Imran has been named vice-captain of the Kerala team for the tournament. Vignesh Puthur and Vishnu Vinod, who played for the Mumbai Indians in the IPL, have also been included in the squad. Akhil Skaria, the leading wicket-taker in the last two KCL seasons, is also part of the squad. Sachin Baby, however, did not make the squad.
Kerala has been placed in Group A along with Chandigarh, Odisha, Vidarbha, Railways, Andhra Pradesh, and Mumbai. Sanju Samson’s team will play its first match of the tournament against Odisha on November 26, and all of Kerala’s matches will be played in Lucknow. Some players will leave for Lucknow on November 23. The remaining players will arrive in Lucknow from Indore, where Kerala played its last Ranji Trophy match against Madhya Pradesh.
Kerala squad for Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2025:
Sanju Samson (captain and wicketkeeper), Rohan Kunnummal, Mohammad Azharuddin, Ahmed Imran (vice-captain), Vishnu Vinod (wicketkeeper), Krishna Dewan, Abdul Bajith, Sally Samson, Salman Nizar, Krishna Prasad, Sibin P Girish, Ankit Sharma, Akhil Scaria, Biju Narayanan, Asif KM, MD Nidheesh, Vignesh Puthur, Sharafuddeen NM