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Why was Suryakumar Yadav left out of Mumbai’s Ranji Trophy squad? Reports identify prime reason

The Press Editor
Why was Suryakumar Yadav left out of Mumbaiโ€™s Ranji Trophy squad? Reports identify prime reason


Suryakumar Yadav’s hopes of forcing his way back into Mumbai’s red-ball setup have suffered a setback after the T20 World Cup-winning India captain was omitted from the state’s Ranji Trophy squad.

India’s T20 World Cup-winning captain Suryakumar Yadav has fallen out of favour after being left out of Mumbai’s Ranji Trophy squad on Tuesday. It was perhaps his only chance for SKY to seek redemption and make a statement with his performance.

Suryakumar last played for India in the T20 World Cup final, where he led them towards a historic victory at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. But his performance in the lead-up and during the tournament raised eyebrows, as SKY’s failure to convert good starts raised a big question mark on his capacity as a performer and captain.

Suryakumar’s omission was ‘unanimous’

According to PTI, Suryakumar had entirely skipped the pre-season training ahead of MCA’s squad announcement, but he had made himself available for the tournament. Unlike SKY, other players of the domestic side trained for the past month at the CCI and the BKC Ground in Mumbai.

“At the end, it is a team game. He does not have any immediate red-ball experience, and everyone was unanimous in their decision on Suryakumar,” the report mentioned.

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The report added that Surya was ‘non-responsive’ when he was approached for Mumbai’s squad selection ten days ago, and made himself available at a later stage.

Are all doors closed for Suryakumar Yadav?

The chances for Suryakumar to make a return in red-ball cricket may have ended for now, but the doors have not entirely closed for the former India captain. SKY may need to compete in club cricket contests hosted by the MCA to return to contention.

Surya was informed by Mumbai’s selectors that he is in contention for domestic tournaments in the 2026-27 season. He is also a candidate to lead Mumbai, but only if the India T20 captain and his successor, Shreyas Iyer, were unavailable.

While Suryakumar was not included in Mumbai’s Ranji Trophy squad, the team features prominent Indian stars, including Yashasvi Jaiswal and Sarfaraz Khan. Shams Mulani and Tushar Deshpande were also named in the side, with Mulani set to lead Mumbai in their Ranji Trophy opener.