Before the 2022–23 season, inter zonal cricket in India had consisted of five teams, representing the Central, East, North, South and West zones.
[1] With the addition of Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland and Sikkim to the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) ahead of the 2018–19 season, a new zone was required when zonal cricket returned in 2022–23.
[4][5] This was the first time that North East Zone participated in any competitive cricket tournament in India, with Hokaito Zhimomi being named as the captain.
[8] However, they could not qualify for the semi-final because of West Zone's first innings lead.
[9] They took part in the 2023 Deodhar Trophy, a List A cricket competition for the first time.