After being left out of all three of Team India’s squads in international cricket, Suryakumar Yadav‘s career hit an all-new low as he was dropped from Mumbai’s Ranji Trophy squad for the opening clash against Chandigarh. The bold call was taken by the selectors despite the fact that Suryakumar made himself available for selection. Mumbai, who are set to begin their Ranji Trophy campaign on October 11, have picked teenage batter Ayush Mhatre as the vice-captain of the side for the curtain-raiser.
According to a report in Cricbuzz, the selectors aim to groom the 19-year-old as a future captain following his success in leading India to the Under-19 World Cup title, despite his limited experience of just 13 first-class matches over two years.
Meanwhile, Indian opener Yashasvi Jaiswal has been named in the 16-man squad led by Siddhesh Lad after confirming his availability for the opening fixture. However, former India T20I captain Suryakumar was left out, with the selectors reportedly not being convinced of his red-ball form.
The report further claimed that Suryakumar did send a message to the Ramesh Powar-led Mumbai selection committee, yet wasn’t considered. Suryakumar, who last featured in a competitive match in June during the Mumbai T20 league, is running out of options to revive his career. Earlier this year, he was sacked as India’s T20I captain despite winning the World Cup in the format and was replaced by Shreyas Iyer.
“He is obviously a big-match player and a proven performer for Mumbai. We just want him to get into rhythm by playing a few red-ball matches. Surya hasn’t played a red-ball match for the last 18 months, so we want him to have a few games under his belt, and then he can get into the team,” Pawar said, explaining Suryakumar’s absence from the Ranji Trophy team.
It was interesting to see that Sarfaraz Khan, a proven performer for Mumbai over the years and a senior name, wasn’t considered for the leadership role. The selectors went directly to Mhatre, who is only 19, for the vice-captain’s role.
Mumbai will also be without seam-bowling all-rounder Shardul Thakur, who suffered a fractured right middle finger during training and is expected to miss at least the first two matches. However, the inclusion of India opener Yashasvi Jaiswal boosts the batting unit while providing him with valuable match practice ahead of India’s Test series against New Zealand in November.
Mhatre missed competitive action for almost five months due to a hamstring injury sustained during IPL 2026, where he represented Chennai Super Kings. Both Mhatre and Lad, who had dislocated his shoulder in the Mumbai T20 league, recently cleared fitness tests at the BKC indoor facility and featured in the Kanga League to prove their match readiness.
Opener Divyansh Saxena, who played alongside Jaiswal in the 2020 Men’s U19 World Cup in South Africa, has earned a recall to the Mumbai Ranji Trophy squad following strong pre-season performances. Mumbai, the 42-time Ranji Trophy champions, are placed in Elite Group D alongside Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Railways, Uttarakhand, Haryana, and Himachal Pradesh.
Mumbai Squad: Siddhesh Lad (c), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Ayush Mhatre (vc), Divyansh Saxena, Musheer Khan, Sarfaraz Khan, Suved Parkar, Aakash Anand (wk), Hardik Tamore (wk), Shams Mulani, Tanush Kotian, Atharva Ankolekar, Tushar Deshpande, Mohit Avasthi, Sylvester D’Souza, Onkar Tarmale.
