Irani Cup: Vihari to lead Rest of India against Ranji champions Saurashtra

Sep 29, 2022

Irani Cup: Vihari to lead Rest of India against Ranji champions Saurashtra Image

Hanuma Vihari, a right-handed batsman, will captain the Rest of India (ROI) team in the Irani Cup 2022 match against Saurashtra, the 2019–20 Ranji Trophy champions, which is slated to take place from October 1–5 at the Saurashtra Cricket Association Stadium in Rajkot. 

The Irani Cup, which has returned after a three-year hiatus, had its roster confirmed by the BCCI on Wednesday. Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the famous competition was postponed for the preceding two seasons. 

Young Delhi batter and captain of India's team that won the 2022 Under-19 World Cup Yash Dhull has also been chosen for the squad. At the Irani Cup, he will try to improve his red-ball credentials after scoring a century on his debut in both the Ranji Trophy and the Duleep Trophy.

In nine first-class innings, the 19-year-old has scored 770 runs, including four hundreds and a top of 200 not out. He will compete for a spot in a capable middle order that includes Vihari, the effective Sarfaraz Khan, and the starting wicketkeeper, KS Bharat. 

Mayank Agarwal, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Abhimanyu Easwaran, and Priyank Panchal are the four openers for Rest of India. In recent red-ball cricket, Jaiswal, Easwaran, and Panchal have all played exceptionally well. 

Jaiswal will be entering the game following his career-best 265 for West Zone versus South Zone in the Duleep Trophy final last week. Easwaran and Panchal, on the other hand, were among India A's runs during their 1-0 home series victory over New Zealand A.

The bowling attack is inexperienced compared to the experienced batting team. Despite a lacklustre start to his red-ball career, the selectors have continued to support tearaway quick Umran Malik. 

Malik has so far taken all eight wickets. Together with Mukesh Kumar, Kuldeep Sen, and Arzan Nagwaswalla, he will form the fourth member of a four-man pace attack. The two starting spinners are Jayant Yadav and Saurabh Kumar.

ROI squad: Hanuma Vihari (Captain), Mayank Agarwal, Priyank Panchal, Abhimanyu Easwaran, Yash Dhull, Sarfaraaz Khan, Yashasvi Jaiswal, K.S.Bharat, Upendra Yadav, Jayant Yadav, Saurabh Kumar, R Sai Kishore, Mukesh Kumar, Umran Malik, Kuldeep Sen, Arzan Nagwaswalla