Mumbai will be missing three of their top players Rohit Sharma, Yashasvi Jaiswal, and Shreyas Iyer in their must-win final Ranji Trophy league match against Meghalaya. The trio will sit out ahead of India's upcoming ODI series against England, which begins on February 6.
Unlike Virat Kohli and KL Rahul, who are set to play in the next Ranji round starting January 30, the Mumbai trio had already featured in the previous match. Iyer has also had an extensive domestic season, participating in both white-ball tournaments.
In their last game, Rohit and Jaiswal, who also open together in Tests, opened the innings for Mumbai against Jammu & Kashmir following BCCI’s directive for centrally contracted players to participate in domestic cricket.
However, their return didn’t yield big scores Rohit managed only 3 and 28, while Jaiswal made 4 and 26. Rohit, in particular, has struggled for form, averaging just 10.93 across his last 15 Test innings.
Iyer, on the other hand, has been Mumbai’s standout batter this season, scoring 480 runs from seven innings at an impressive average of 68.57, including two centuries. He also performed exceptionally in the Vijay Hazare and Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy tournaments.
Mumbai will also be without allrounder Shivam Dube, who joined India's T20I squad after the J&K match.
For the crucial Meghalaya clash, Mumbai have added batter Angkrish Raghuvanshi and allrounders Atharva Ankolekar and Suryansh Shedge. The team is expected to return to a young opening partnership, with Raghuvanshi pairing with 17-year-old Ayush Mhatre, who has had a remarkable debut season with four centuries and two half-centuries across formats.
As defending champions, Mumbai are in a tough position, currently third in Group A behind J&K and Baroda. A win against Meghalaya is essential for them to secure a place in the knockout stage.
Mumbai Squad:
Ajinkya Rahane (capt), Ayush Mhatre, Angkrish Raghuvanshi, Amogh Bhatkal, Siddhesh Lad, Akash Anand (wk), Hardik Tamore (wk), Suryansh Shedge, Shardul Thakur, Shams Mulani, Tanush Kotian, Mohit Avasthi, Sylvester D'Souza, Royston Dias, Shreyas Gurav, Atharva Ankolekar.
Updated on 29th January, 2025 by MyFortune11 Team.