Mumbai Cricket Association named Suryakumar Yadav captain of Mumbai’s team for this year’s Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 Trophy. The appointment was confirmed on Monday, with Yadav, India’s 2026 T20 World Cup-winning captain, set to lead the squad in the domestic tournament starting November 14.
In a statement, the MCA said Yadav’s international experience and batting prowess will be central to the team’s campaign. Yadav himself expressed pride at the role, saying, “It is always a matter of immense pride to represent Mumbai. I am honoured to lead this talented group in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. Mumbai has a rich cricketing legacy and a winning culture, and we will look to uphold those traditions.” He added confidence in the squad’s mix of experience and youth, with the aim of winning the trophy.
On Monday morning, Yadav captained an intra-squad practice match at the Brabourne Stadium against a team led by Sarfaraz Khan. The match served as preparation ahead of Mumbai’s practice games on November 7 and 9, before the final squad selection.
Yadav’s appointment reverses a difficult period for the 36-year-old batter. He was overlooked for the Ranji Trophy squad in early October, despite making himself available for the full season. Mumbai selectors cited his limited red-ball experience as the reason. Since then, Yadav has played in the MCA President’s Cup T20 tournament for MIG Cricket Club and last appeared in competition during the Mumbai T20 League in June.
After being dropped from the Indian team following the T20 World Cup due to poor form, Yadav will be looking to use the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy to stage a comeback.
Another positive development for Mumbai is the return of all-rounder Shardul Thakur, who missed the first leg of the Ranji Trophy after suffering a middle-finger fracture. Thakur is now back in training and available for selection.
Mumbai’s Ranji captain, Siddhesh Lad, has opted out of the white-ball tournament. The 16-member squad includes India all-rounder Shivam Dube but will be without Suryansh Shedge and Tanush Kotian, who are on India A duty for the ACC Rising Stars tournament in Doha from November 19 to 29.
According to a source within the Mumbai Cricket Association, the senior selection committee led by Rajesh Pawar decided on Yadav’s captaincy for the white-ball season. The team will depart for Kolkata on November 11, where they will face Hyderabad in their opening match of Elite Group D on November 14. Other teams in the group include Chhattisgarh, Goa, Gujarat, Odisha, Uttarakhand, and Vidarbha.
The full squad announced by MCA consists of Suryakumar Yadav (captain), Atharva Ankolekar, Angkrish Raghuvanshi (wicketkeeper), Shams Mulani, Divyansh Saxena, Maxwell Swaminathan, Suved Parkar, Tushar Deshpande, Musheer Khan, Shardul Thakur, Sarfaraz Khan, Mohit Avasthi, Sairaj Patil, Sylvester Dsouza, Shivam Dube, and Hardik Tamore (wicketkeeper).
Mumbai enter the tournament after winning all four of their matches in the first leg of the Ranji Trophy.
According to Yahoo Sports.
