Ishan Kishan’s return to red-ball cricket has been given a boost with his inclusion in the Ruturaj Gaikwad-led India squad for the Irani Cup, which will be held in Lucknow from October 1 to 5.
Kishan played first-class cricket for the first time since July 2023, a period famous for losing his BCCI central contract, and scored a century for India C in the Duleep Trophy.
Kishan is one of the two wicketkeepers in the team, with Dhruv Jurel also set to be selected if India do not include him in their XI for the second Test against Bangladesh, which is scheduled to be held in Kanpur from September 27 to October 1.
Left-handed prospect Yash Dayal and middle-order batsman Sarfaraz Khan, both of whom were included in the Test squad, have also been selected for the RoI and Mumbai teams respectively, but the same conditions apply.
Mohammed Shami is a notable absence from the RoI squad. Shami, who has not played any competitive cricket since last year’s 50-over World Cup, could have played at least one Duleep Trophy match to prove his match fitness. Now, his return looks set to be delayed even further, as he is not included in the RoI squad.
Shami himself wants to spend more time on rehabilitation as he recovers from ankle surgery. The Indian fast bowler is keen to get back into top-class cricket in the Ranji Trophy, which begins on October 11. He has been named as a strong candidate for Bengal this season.
However, Padikkal and Sai Sudharsan have recently been given a chance in the middle order. Padikkal batted at No. 4 in his Test debut against England at Dharamsala earlier this year.
Andhra’s Ricky Bhui and Baroda’s Shashwat Rawat were rewarded for their Duleep Trophy performances. Bhui was the top scorer with 359 runs at an average of 71.80, and hit two hundreds and a half-century, while Rawat made 124 and 53 in his most recent appearance for India A.
Meanwhile, Ajinkya Rahane will lead a full-strength Mumbai squad that includes Shreyas Iyer, Prithvi Shaw and Sarfaraz. Rahane has been a consistent presence in red-ball cricket for Leicestershire in the County Championship. India all-rounder Shardul Thakur, who is back fit after undergoing foot surgery in June, is also back.
Thakur, who suffered an injury during India’s tour of South Africa late last year, has not played professional cricket since IPL 2024. With the Australia tour looming, he will be hoping to get back into contention. He last represented India in the first Test at Centurion in the South Africa series and is back to play for Mumbai in the Ranji knockout.
The match was originally scheduled to be held in Mumbai, but was moved out of the city due to possible weather disruptions caused by the monsoon.
Rest of India: Ruturaj Gaikwad (captain), Abhimanyu Easwaran (deputy captain), B Sai Sudharsan, Devdutt Padikkal, Dhruv Jurel (captain)*, Ishan Kishan (captain), Manav Suthar, Saransh Jain, Prasidh Krishna, Mukesh Kumar, Yash Dayal*, Ricky Bhui, Shashwat Rawat, Khaleel Ahmed, Rahul Chahar.
Mumbai: Ajinkya Rahane (captain), Prithvi Shaw, Ayush Mhatre, Musheer Khan, Sarfaraz Khan*, Shreyas Iyer, Siddhesh Lad, Suryansh Shedge, Hardik Tamore (jp), Sidhaant Addhatrao (jp), Shams Mulani, Tanush Kotian, Himanshu Singh, Shardul Thakur, Mohit Avasthi, Mohammad Jund Khan, Royston Dias.
*If not included in India’s XI for Kanpur Test, selection for Iran Cup
