On Monday, defending champions Vidarbha announced their 17-member squad for the season-opening match against Nagaland in Bengaluru, led by Akshay Wadkar. The squad includes Shivam Deshmukh and Praful Hinge.

Vidarbha, who defeated Kerala in last season’s final, will face Nagaland at the BCCI’s Centre of Excellence Ground from October 15-18.

Vidarbha is placed in Ranji Trophy Elite Group A alongside Uttar Pradesh, Andhra, Tamil Nadu, Jharkhand, Odisha, Baroda, and Nagaland.

The team comes off a significant 93-run victory against the Rest of India in the Irani Cup.

The defending champions will be without star batter Karun Nair, who has been replaced by Karnataka batter Ravikumar Samarth.

Usman Ghani will continue to coach Vidarbha, with Dharmender Ahlawat named as the assistant coach.

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