International Shardul Thakur will lead Mumbai in the 2025-26 edition of Ranji Trophy, the Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA) announced while unveiling the list of probables for the prestigious tournament on Friday.
This will be Shardul's first stint at the helm of the 42-time champions. The 33-year-old bowling all-rounder will replace veteran batter Ajinkya Rahane, who gave up the position to play as a regular member of the team
Rahane had led Mumbai to the 2023-24 Ranji Trophy title and the Irani Cup 2024-25 triumph last year.
Recently, Thakur captained West Zone in the season-opening Duleep Trophy, where his side failed to go beyond the semifinals.
"Yes, I'm open for Mumbai captaincy. This was one of the steps (the Duleep Trophy) where I got that experience of captaincy. It was just my first game and there were lots of learnings. I would not say that captaincy is difficult, but there are a lot of things which you learn only when you step into the captain's shoes," he had said after his side's loss to Central Zone in the semis as quoted by ESPNCricinfo.
Some of the noted names among the probables include Sarfaraz Khan, Ayush Mhatre, Musheer Khan, Angkrish Raghuvansh, and Tanush Kotian.
Players on national duty will be included as per their availability, the MCA said.
Mumbai, who were knocked out in the semifinals last season, will kickstart their Ranji Trophy campaign with a match against Jammu and Kashmir on October 15.
Probables: Shardul Thakur (Captain), Ayush Mhatre, Musheer Khan, Angkrish Raghuvanshi, Akhil Herwadkar, Ajinkya Rahane, Sarfaraz Khan, Siddhesh Lad, Suved Parkar, Suryansh Shedge, Akash Parkar, Tushar Deshpande, Sylvester Dsouza, Irfan Umair, Roystan Dias, Pratik Mishra, Akash Anand (Wicketkeeper), Hardik Tamore, Prasad Pawar, Shams Mulani, Tanush Kotian, Himanshu Singh, Atharva Ankolekar, Ishan Mulchandani.
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