Ranji Trophy: Why Team India stars won't feature for Mumbai
What's the story
Mumbai, the Ranji Trophy defending champions, have announced their 16-member squad for the upcoming Elite Group A match against Meghalaya, starting January 30 (Thursday). The squad will be devoid of Indian cricket stars Rohit Sharma, Yashasvi Jaiswal, and Shreyas Iyer, as they regroup for the England ODI series. The likes of Angkrish Raghuvanshi, Suryansh Shedge, and Atharva Ankolekar have been recalled to strengthen the squad.
Absentees
Key players to miss match due to national duty
Sharma, Jaiswal, and Iyer will miss the clash as they will feature in the ODI series against England at home. The series will begin on February 6. The trio played for Mumbai against Jammu & Kashmir at the BKC Ground earlier, after BCCI's order to play regular domestic cricket. Notably, Rohit and Jaiswal opened for Mumbai in the match.
Title defense
Mumbai's title defense hangs in balance
Mumbai's title defense has been put in jeopardy after their five-wicket loss to Jammu & Kashmir last week. The Ajinkya Rahane-led side now requires a big win, with a bonus point, against Meghalaya. They also require Baroda to beat current table leader Jammu & Kashmir. Karsh Kothari, who was part of Mumbai's Playing XI against J&K, hasn't been picked for the upcoming match.
Information
A look at Mumbai's squad
Mumbai's squad: Ajinkya Rahane (captain), Ayush Mhatre, Angkrish Raghuvanshi, Amogh Bhatkal, Siddhesh Lad, Akash Anand (wicket-keeper), Hardik Tamore (wicket-keeper), Suryansh Shedge, Shardul Thakur, Shams Mulani, Tanush Kotian, Mohit Avasthi, Sylvester D'Souza, Royston Dias, Shreyas Gurav, and Atharva Ankolekar.