All-rounder Shardul Thakur will lead the side in the upcoming season.
The exclusion of star batter Shreyas Iyer from India’s squad for the upcoming Asia Cup 2025 has already garnered severe criticism of the BCCI’s (Board of Control for Cricket in India) selection panel. Now, reports are emerging that the 30-year-old has also refused to take over the Ranji Trophy leadership of his domestic team, Mumbai.
The veteran Indian player Ajinkya Rahane stepped down as the captain of Mumbai a day ago. After years of leading the side, the batter decided to resign from this role as he felt that the authority should start grooming a new skipper who could take forward their legacy. Notably, the side ended a nine-year drought under his leadership to win their 42nd Ranji Trophy title in 2023-24.
“Captaining and winning championships with the Mumbai team has been an absolute honour. With a new domestic season ahead, I believe it’s the right time to groom a new leader, and hence I’ve decided not to continue in the captaincy role,” wrote Rahane on X (formerly Twitter).
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However, the board elected all-rounder Shardul Thakur as the new skipper of Mumbai’s Ranji Trophy ahead of the upcoming domestic season. Previously, he was also named the leader of the West Zone for the Duleep Trophy 2025, which will kick off on August 28.
According to sources, Ajinkya Naik, the President of the Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA), has revealed that the batter has refused to take up the role. However, there are still speculations over the actual reason behind the move.
Previously, the batter had a stunning season in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025. Following his title-winning season with the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in IPL 2024, Shreyas joined the Punjab Kings (PBKS) for a mammoth INR 26.75 crores ahead of the latest IPL season. The batter scored 604 runs in 17 matches at a fierce strike rate of 175.07 while leading his new franchise to just their second IPL Final in 18 seasons.
However, even after this exceptional show, Shreyas was snubbed from the national Test squad for the five-match series in England. The batter also missed out on securing a place in the reserves of India’s squad for the upcoming multi-national T20 tournament, starting on September 9.
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