New Delhi: India skipper Rohit Sharma will play a Ranji Trophy match for the first time in almost a decade after he and young gun Yashasvi Jaiswal were included in Mumbai’s squad for their fixture against Jammu and Kashmir, starting January 23 at MCA-BKC Ground in Mumbai.
Veteran batter Ajinkya Rahane will continue to lead the side, the Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA) confirmed while announcing the squad on Monday.
During a press conference to announce India’s white-ball squads for the ICC Champions Trophy and England series, Rohit confirmed his participation in the next round of the Ranji Trophy.
When asked if he would play in the next domestic game for Mumbai, Rohit replied, “I will”.
Rohit aiming to regain red-ball form
Rohit’s form in red-ball cricket has come under the scanner after a dismal outing in his last eight Tests, including against New Zealand at home and away against Australia. By tuning up for practice with his Ranji teammates last week, Rohit gave a massive indication of playing in India’s premier red-ball domestic tournament.
After the team’s disastrous tour of Australia, BCCI has made it mandatory for the players to feature in the domestic circuit.
Jaiswal followed suit and joined the Mumbai camp a few days later at the BKC ground and participated in batting sessions with his domestic team.
The BCCI recently released 10-point guidelines which included mandatory participation for all contracted India players in domestic cricket except when there are fitness issues. Superstar batter Virat Kohli, who was also under fire for poor red-ball form in his last eight matches, pulled out of Delhi’s match due to a neck injury.
Rohit blamed his busy schedule with the national team as the main reason for not playing domestic cricket.
Mumbai squad: Ajinkya Rahane (captain), Rohit Sharma, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Ayush Mhatre, Shreyas Iyer, Siddhesh Lad, Shivam Dube, Hardik Tamore (wk), Akash Anand (wk), Tanush Kotian, Shams Mulani, Himanshu Singh, Shardul Thakur, Mohit Awasthi, Sylvester Dsouza, Royston Dias, Karsh Kothari.
Indian skipper Rohit Sharma is all set to appear in a red-ball domestic match for Mumbai after almost a decade after being named in Mumbai squad for their next Ranji game. Cricket Sports News: Latest Cricket News, Cricket Live Score, Sports Breaking News from Sports Today
