The Ranji Trophy promises to feature an exciting line-up of cricket stars when it resumes on Thursday, with big names such as Rohit Sharma and Rishabh Pant turning out for their respective teams, thanks to a directive from the BCCI to emphasize the importance of domestic cricket. Rohit will return after nearly a decade for Mumbai as the second half of India’s premier red-ball competition gets underway. This season marks the first time the Ranji Trophy has been split into two halves, with teams playing five matches each in the first leg, while the second leg will feature two more matches for every team.
Why Are Big Names Returning Back To Domestic Cricket?
After India’s disappointing losses to New Zealand at home and Australia on tour, national players have been reminded that domestic cricket can no longer be ignored. This has led to the participation of key players, such as Rohit Sharma, who will aim to regain form ahead of the Champions Trophy next month – potentially his last shot at winning a major tournament.
Virat Kohli To Play For Delhi After 12 Years
Its is likely that Virat Kohli will be playing Ranji Trophy and will be featuring in Delhi vs Railways match which is scheduled for January 30.
Also Read: Virat Kohli Takes Big Decision After Poor Run In Border-Gavaskar Trophy
Rohit Sharma’s Return To Mumbai
Rohit, who has not been in the best of form with the bat lately, will lead Mumbai. He is likely to open with Yashasvi Jaiswal, just like they did for India. Mumbai will face a tough Jammu and Kashmir team, which is currently second in Elite Group A. Despite losing the season opener to Baroda, Mumbai will look to bounce back and aim for a record-extending 43rd title.
Rishabh Pant And Ravindra Jadeja Will Make A Comeback
Rajkot. Delhi, facing the hosts Saurashtra, have nothing to lose while the same goes for the Saurashtras too as their sole victory also kept them in a long run to gain against the front runners in their Group D.
Both Ravindra Jadeja and Cheteshwar Pujara of India would play against their teammate Rishabh Pant.
Rishabh Pant is now hopeful of putting Delhi in contention at Punjab.
Also Read: Hardik Pandya Ignored For Vice-Captaincy: What Went Wrong For India’s Star All-Rounder?
Shubman Gill In Punjab
He will look to turn his form around when he captains Punjab in their Group C match against Karnataka at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru. Punjab have won only one out of their five matches so far and will be looking to Gill, who is now vice-captain of the India one-day side, to lift their coffers, especially with Abhishek Sharma and Arshdeep Singh being absent on national duty. Karnataka, fresh off their title-winning Vijay Hazare Trophy campaign, will bolster their squad with the return of Devdutt Padikkal and Prasidh Krishna.
