New Delhi, October 5 (Daily Kiran) : The Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA) has appointed 19-year-old Ayush Mhatre as vice-captain for the upcoming Ranji Trophy season. Notably, star player Surya Kumar Yadav has been excluded from the 16-member squad for the first match. Mumbai is set to kick off its season against Chandigarh on October 11 at Wankhede Stadium.
This year, Mumbai competes in Elite Group D alongside Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Railways, Uttarakhand, Haryana, and Himachal Pradesh. Despite Yadav making himself available for selection, the committee, led by Rajesh Pawar, opted to prioritize young talent in the red-ball format.
Pawar held a meeting with other selectors, including captain Siddhesh Lad, head coach Omkar Salvi, and former Indian cricketer Dilip Vengsarkar, to finalize the squad.
Mumbai will also miss the services of seam-bowling all-rounder Shardul Thakur, who is sidelined due to a fracture in his right middle finger sustained during training. He will likely miss at least the first two matches. However, Indian opener Yashasvi Jaiswal has been included in the team, providing a boost to the batting lineup ahead of the Test series against New Zealand in November.
Mhatre recently returned to competitive cricket after a five-month hiatus due to a hamstring injury sustained while playing for Chennai Super Kings in IPL 2026. He, along with Lad, passed a fitness test at the BKC indoor facility and demonstrated his readiness by participating in the Kanga League. Opener Divyansh Saxena has also made a strong comeback to the Ranji Trophy team following impressive performances in pre-season competitions.
The Mumbai team for the Ranji Trophy includes: Siddhesh Lad (captain), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Ayush Mhatre (vice-captain), Divyansh Saxena, Mushir Khan, Sarfaraz Khan, Suved Parkar, Akash Anand (wicketkeeper), Hardik Tamore (wicketkeeper), Shams Mulani, Tanush Kotian, Atharv Ankolekar, Tushar Deshpande, Mohit Awasthi, Silvester D’Souza, and Omkar Tarmale.
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