Ranji Trophy 2024-25 UP Squad: Aryan Juyal named Captain of Uttar Pradesh; Key India stars miss out

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Uttar Pradesh cricket is set to witness a new era as young and talented Aryan Juyal has been appointed as the captain of the state team for the upcoming Ranji Trophy season.

The team is set to kick off its campaign against Bengal on October 11 at the Ekana International Cricket Stadium. This season sees a mix of experienced players and fresh faces in the 22-member squad selected by the committee, which includes six standby players.

Due to his commitments with the Indian national team, Rinku Singh will miss the first round of matches. But the likes of Nitish Rana and Yash Dayal are included in the team for the first two matches.

However, the squad will be without Bhuvaneshwar Kumar, Kuldeep Yadav, and Dhruv Jurel this season. Kumar, who has shifted his focus solely to white-ball cricket, signifies a turning point in his career, while Yadav and Jurel are set to represent India in the Test series against New Zealand later this month.

"I have been given a big responsibility. Last season, I captained one match against Kerala where I scored a century, and UP won that match. This time, the team has more young players and we will give our best with a new approach," Juyal said to TOI after his appointment as captain.

Uttar Pradesh boasts a potent mix of spin and pace, poised to challenge their opponents. Saurabh Kumar, a seasoned spinner with 312 first-class wickets, leads the spin department. Complementing him is the leg-break bowler Vipraj Nigam, fresh from his impressive 20-wicket haul in 11 matches during the UPT20 league, and Shivam Sharma, a slow left-arm bowler who was the top wicket-taker in the 2021-22 Vijay Hazare Trophy.

In terms of batting, the likes of Priyam Garg and Nitish Rana will have a key role to play. Rana switched his domestic allegiance to Uttar Pradesh from last season and has been a prolific performer for them in the domestic circuit.

UP Squad for Ranji Trophy 2024-25 (First Two Matches)

Aryan Juyal (C) (WK), Swastik Chikara, Priyam Garg, Akshdeep Nath, Nitish Rana, Saurabh Kumar, Ankit Rajpoot, Aaqib Khan, Vipraj Nigam, Yash Dayal, Shivam Sharma, Siddhartha Yadav, Madhav Kaushik, Vijay Kumar, Aaditya Sharma (WK), Kritagya Singh.

Standby: Atal Bihari Rai, Prince Yadav, Abhishek Goswami, Vineet Panwar, Vaibhav Chaudhary, Kartikey Jaiswal