Why Sarfaraz Khan was named Mumbai captain ahead of Ajinkya Rahane and Prithvi Shaw?

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Sarfaraz Khan will be seen leading Mumbai in the All India Buchi Babu Invitation Cricket Tournament in Chennai from August 15. The decision has been taken as senior Mumbai players are unavailable at the moment.

Ajinkya Rahane, who led Mumbai to their 42nd Ranji Trophy title triumph last season, is in England playing for Leicestershire. Star opener Prithvi Shaw is also in England, and playing for Northamptonshire. Shreyas Iyer has made his ODI comeback for India, and is likely to train at the NCA ahead of the Bangladesh series in September.

Mumbai will also miss their left-arm spinner Shams Mulani, who was Ajinkya Rahane's deputy last season, as he is training at the National Cricket Academy in Bangalore.

The Sandeep Patil-led selection committee has rewarded young Sarfaraz Khan in the absence of the key players. The 26-year-old made his Test debut earlier this year in the Test series against England. He played three matches and scored 200 runs including three fifties. The southpaw's average in his maiden series for India was an impressive 50. He also batted at a strike rate of 79.36.

Ajinkya Rahane to lead Mumbai in Irani Cup against Rest of India

Speaking to mid-day, Sandeep Patil confirmed that Ajinkya Rahane would lead the Mumbai team in Irani Cup against Rest of India. The match will start from October 1.

“There is no question of who will be captain if Ajinkya is available, but in his absence we should be ready with options and currently Sarfaraz is the senior-most and a Test player,” Patil told Sunday mid-day.

The Mumbai team recently had a two-week preparatory camp at Alur, near Bangalore, where they also played a few practice matches.

Mumbai squad for Buchi Babu Tournament 2024: Sarfaraz Khan (captain), Siddhesh Lad, Divyansh Saxena, Amogh Bhatkal, Akhil Herwadkar, Musheer Khan, Nutan Goel, Suryansh Shedge, Hardik Tamore, Prasad Pawar, Tanush Kotian, Atharva Ankolekar, Himanshu Singh, Dhanit Raut, Sylvester D’Souza, Junaid Khan, Harsh Tanna