Mumbai Captain's Blunt Take On Suryakumar Yadav's Ranji Trophy Snub

Mumbai captain Siddhesh Lad on Thursday said he respects the decision of the selectors to exclude Suryakumar Yadav from their Ranji Trophy season opener against Chandigarh, while adding that players who have prepared well will always be a part of the conversation. The 36-year-old Suryakumar had skipped training with the Mumbai team in the lead-up to the Ranji Trophy season and had not even answered the selectors' call about 10 days before selection. Suryakumar made himself available closer to the selection meeting, but the Rajesh Pawar-led panel did not pick the former India T20I skipper on the grounds of a lack of red-ball practice.

"Surya has been a fantastic player for Mumbai cricket. He has done a lot for Mumbai cricket over the years and also for the Indian team. He is a World Cup-winning captain. In our group, there is tremendous respect for Surya," Lad told the media during Mumbai's pre-season press conference.

"But whatever decisions are taken by the management and the selectors, whatever they feel is right at this moment, as a captain, I want to respect them."

"I am sure whoever is in contention and preparing well for the season will always be in the conversation. But I don't want to go beyond the selectors. It's their job, and my job is to work with the 15-member squad that I have," Lad added.

Lad was named Mumbai skipper ahead of the Ranji Trophy season, while Ayush Mhatre, the 19-year-old opening batter, was named his deputy.

Mhatre said he would look to draw from his experience of playing with MS Dhoni at Chennai Super Kings.

"He always tells me that you should be calm on the field and that some decisions we take in an aggressive mode are not the right decisions to make. We will be in that aggressive mode only for five minutes," he said.

"So, stay calm on the field and take decisions in a calm frame of mind; it will be helpful for you. It helped me in the U-19 World Cup as well, so I just try to stay calm on the field," Mhatre said.

Mhatre, who led India U-19 to a sixth World Cup title earlier this year, has spent about three months at the Centre of Excellence recovering from a hamstring injury.

Lad said Mumbai's rich history of winning the Ranji Trophy 42 times would put pressure on his side, but they have worked hard to handle all challenges.

"I feel that because of Mumbai's rich history, being 42-time champions, the legacy we have, and the players who have represented Mumbai, the pressure will always be there," he said.

"So, I feel the pressure will always be there when you are representing Mumbai. But as a unit, we want to embrace it and not run away from it because we know the history we have, and we know the culture we have."

With Shardul Thakur sidelined for about a month after copping a blow to his hand off an Mhatre stroke in the nets, Lad said Mumbai will miss their star all-rounder.

"A player like Shardul gives us the right balance in the team. We are going to miss Shardul in the first game for sure. But we are also trying to see how quickly he can recover and get back to playing," he said.

Underlining the importance of clarity in communication, Lad said it is crucial for Mumbai to learn from their mistakes, especially from last season.

"We worked a lot on our fitness right from the off-season camp. The fitness markers have definitely gone up, and we now have a fitness standard," he said.

"Everyone is in good shape. As you mentioned, we worked a lot on our fielding as well because there were some opportunities that we could have grabbed. It can happen again, but our job is to prepare well and, as I said, have clarity. Our players should have clarity and also the security they need," he added.

Featured Video Of The Day

India Ends CWG Boxing Campaign With Record-Breaking Seven Gold Medals