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The Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA) announced its squad for the upcoming Ranji Trophy 2026-27 season with captain Siddhesh Lad and vice-captain Ayush Mhatre. The squad surprisingly missed some of the big names in Indian cricket, including India's former T20I captain Suryakumar Yadav and the pace-bowling all-rounder Shardul Thakur. Mumbai senior men's chief selector Rajesh Pawar has explained why Yadav and Thakur are not selected for the Ranji Trophy squad.
Speaking on RevSportz Global, Rajesh Pawar mentioned that both Suryakumar Yadav and Shardul Thakur are in their schemes, but as their aim is to promote young talent, the MCA selectors pushed youngsters like Ayush Mhatre for a major role.
Mumbai chief selector explains the absence of Suryakumar Yadav in Ranji Trophy squad
Suryakumar Yadav keeps himself available for the entire domestic season after being dropped from the Indian national cricket team. As the experienced batter is expected to make a return for the Men in Blue, many might have expected to see his name in Mumbai's Ranji Trophy squad.
Rajesh Pawar claimed that Suryakumar Yadav is not entirely ruled out of the Ranji Trophy 2026-27 season yet. They did not mention Yadav in the team as the batter has not performed in the red-ball format for a long time. He will be again back for selection contention only after playing in red-ball matches.
"Suryakumar Yadav is a very big player. He has not played Red Bull matches for the last one and a half years. So, we have decided that he will play some matches. He will definitely play. He can join the team," MCA men's chief selector Rajesh Pawar said.
Shardul Thakur has an injury
He also made it clear that the squad they announced on October 5 is valid only for the first two matches of the campaign. After the first two matches, MCA could make changes to their squad.
Pawar also mentioned that Shardul Thakur is not in the squad because of an injury. According to him, Shardul has a fracture in his right middle finger. The state cricket governing body will take its next call on the experienced all-rounder after the first two matches of Ranji Trophy 2026-27.
"Shardul has a slight fracture in his right middle finger. So, maybe he can miss the first two matches. So, we have selected this team for the first match only. So, we will get to know about him after two matches," Rajesh Pawar added.
MCA chief selector explains the appointments in leadership roles
The MCA chief selector stated that they appointed Siddhesh Lad as the captain because of his experience and performance in the previous season, and Ayush Mhatre was named as his deputy because of his credentials as a batter and as a captain.
"Our new captain for this season is Siddhesh Lath, which was decided by the selection committee based on his last season's performance and experience. So, we have decided on Siddhesh Lath as our new captain. We also had a plan to keep our junior, who is going to be our future, as a vice-captain, Ayush Matre, who has led India in the U19 World Cup. He is a smart cricketer and is performing well. So, we planned to promote the youngster," Rajesh Pawar expressed.
Mumbai senior men's chief selector Rajesh Pawar speaks about Yashasvi Jaiswal's availability for the Ranji Trophy opener, Ayush Mhatre's elevation as the vice-captain, Shardul Thakur's injury and the decision to not include Suryakumar Yadav in the squad. "Surya hasn't played red-ball cricket for a long period. We focused on the youngsters." @shamik100 reports. @IDFCFIRSTBank #Ranjitrophy
— RevSportz Global (@RevSportzGlobal) October 5, 2026
