“Deprived Youngsters”: Mumbai Selector’s Dig At Rohit Over Ranji Return 

The last two rounds of the Ranji Trophy saw several Indian cricket A-listers like Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, Rishabh Pant, KL Rahul, Ravindra Jadeja feature in the premier domestic cricket event after a long gap. The decision by top cricketers to play Ranji Trophy came after the BCCI’s diktat of making domestic cricket mandatory for all players. However, barring Ravindra Jadeja, none of the other players could manage to leave a significant mark in the Ranji Trophy matches. 

In the quarter-final of the Ranji Trophy, Mumbai will be bolstered by the presence of India’s T20 captain Suryakumar Yadav, and allrounder Shivam Dube against Haryana at the Chaudhary Bansi Lal Cricket Stadium in Lahli, starting on February 8.

Before the match, Mumbai chief selector Sanjay Patil had a clear message for Yadav and Dube. Suryakumar was a part of the Mumbai side in their clash against Maharashtra in October, whereas Dube was a member of the star-studded hosts’ side that included India Test and ODI skipper Rohit Sharma as well as Yashasvi Jaiswal, and which lost to J&K at home last month.

“I’m very clear on this. Considering our defeat against J&K, which came despite the presence of six India cricketers in our lineup, which was very disappointing, I want both SKY and Dube not to just participate in this Ranji Trophy knockout match, but perform well, and contribute to Mumbai’s victory,” Patil told TOI.

“I’m still upset at the J&K defeat, which I feel was our worst ever. To accommodate the India players in that match, we had to deprive a few talented youngsters (like opener Ayush Mhatre). Mumbai needs players who can perform and make the side win games, something which was missing in that match. The India players need to realise it’s not just about being ‘available’ for that game. The culture of Mumbai cricket has always been about giving your 100% when you are playing for Mumbai.”

Mumbai squad: Ajinkya Rahane (c), Ayush Mhatre, Angkrish Raghuvanshi, Amogh Bhatkal, Suryakumar Yadav, Siddhesh Lad, Shivam Dube, Akash Anand (wk), Hardik Tamore (wk), Suryansh Shedge, Shardul Thakur, Shams Mulani, Tanush Kotian, Mohit Avasthi, Sylvester D’Souza, Royston Dias, Atharva Ankolekar, Harsh Tanna.