Suryakumar Yadav won’t make his return to first-class cricket in the first round of the Ranji Trophy as he wasn’t named in the squad for Mumbai’s fixture against Jammu and Kashmir.
The India-Australia T20I series is scheduled to kick off on October 29 and Suryakumar could have played a Ranji Trophy round before going to the continent. His absence from the squad led to speculation that he might have been dropped from the Ranji Trophy team. But that’s not the case.
Speaking to The Times of India, the Mumbai Cricket Association official revealed the reason. “No, SKY hasn’t been dropped. It’s just that his availability wasn’t confirmed for this match. The Mumbai Cricket Association’s staff tried to contact him (to ask if he would play in the match), but he didn’t give his availability for this match to us,” MCA secretary Abhay Hadap said.
While Suryakumar isn’t part of the team, Shivam Dube will play the first round of the Ranji Trophy before flying to Australia. Shardul Thakur has replaced Ajinkya Rahane as Mumbai’s captain.
India U19 captain Ayush Mhatre has been included in the team along with Rahane, Siddhesh Lad, Sarfaraz Khan and Tushar Deshpande, among others. The fixture will be played from October 15 to 18.
Why Shreyas Iyer will not play Ranji Trophy?
Shreyas Iyer has taken a break from red-ball cricket due to his back issues and won’t play red-ball cricket for six months. “Mr Shreyas Iyer has informed the BCCI of his decision to take a six-month break from red-ball cricket. Having undergone back surgery in the UK and managed his recovery well, he has recently experienced recurring back spasms and stiffness while playing the longer format. He wishes to utilise this period to build endurance, body resilience and work on his fitness. In view of his decision, he was not considered for selection for the Irani Cup,” the BCCI said in its release recently.
Iyer is part of the ODI team and will soon travel to Australia. He is now India’s ODI captain and will assist Shubman Gill against the Kangaroos. He leads Punjab Kings in IPL.