The Delhi and District Cricket Association (DDCA) is currently busy with hosting the second India vs West Indies Test match at the Arun Jaitley Stadium. However, a day prior, the office-bearers held a meeting to announce Delhi’s Ranji Trophy squad for the first two games of the new domestic season. Rishabh Pant, whose name revolved around the team, is not included as of yet but might get into the team if he recovers well on time ahead of the second or third game.
Rishabh Pant keen to play Ranji Trophy
While attempting a brave reverse scoop off Chris Woakes during the fourth Test match in Manchester, Pant fractured his toe. He aggravated his injury by batting the next day and was thus ruled out of action for a couple of months. He missed the Delhi Premier League (DPL) T20 2025, the Asia Cup, and the India vs West Indies Tests.
Now, Pant eyes India’s next Test series, which will be against South Africa, starting November 14. He is very much on course for a comeback and has stated his desire to play Ranji Trophy games before that. While he won’t recover on time for the first game that starts on October 15 (vs HYD), he could play the next three – October 25-28, November 1-4, and November 8-11.
“We will include Rishabh Pant as and when he is available and gets clearance from the NCA. He has shown interest in playing. He will be offered captaincy whenever he is available. The second and third games are in Delhi,” a DDCA official said in a statement.
Nitish Rana returns but some questionable decisions
One of the most striking names that has been included is Nitish Rana, who switched his allegiance from Uttar Pradesh to Delhi earlier this year. That made him eligible to play at the Delhi Premier League (DPL) 2025, where he announced his comeback in superb style. He led the West Delhi Lions to a remarkable win as he remained unbeaten in the entire knockout leg. In the three knockouts (Eliminator, Qualifier 2, and Final), Rana bludgeoned 134*, 45*, and 79*, remaining not out each time. That’s a total of 258 runs at a strike rate of 198.4. All three matches saw his team chase down tricky targets. Rana has been rewarded and is now back in the whites for Delhi.
Meanwhile, Ayush Badoni continues to lead, while Yash Dhull has become his deputy. Dhull, who has played the Duleep Trophy and Irani Cup recently, had a magnificent DPL 2025 too, where he moulded his T20 game to hammer 435 runs at 87.00 and 167.31. Aprit Rana, the leading run-getter of the T20 tournament, and Anuj Rawat, Simarjeet Singh, Money Grewal, Ayush Doseja, and Tejasvi Dahiya are other talented players who are part of the team.
However, there are some huge names not selected. Harshit Rana is likely to be excluded due to his international duties but veteran Jonty Sidhu isn’t there too. Vansh Bedi, who was part of the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) at IPL this year, is snubbed as well. Harsh Tyagi, who has represented India Under-19, is nowhere to be seen as well.
It seems DPL 2025 performances have carried a huge weightage in the Ranji Trophy selection this time. Also, TOI reported that there were no prior practice games or match simulations in order to select the Ranji Trophy squad. There were a bunch of players called for net sessions and the squad announcement was made hurriedly.
Delhi Ranji Trophy Squad for First 2 Matches
Ayush Badoni (Capt.), Yash Dhull, Arpit Rana, Sanat Sangwan, Anuj Rawat, Sumit Mathur, Shivam Sharma, Rounak Waghela, Navdeep Saini, Simarjeet Singh, Money Grewal, Siddhant Sharma, Dhruv Kaushik, Pranav Rajvanshi, Nitish Rana, Himmat Singh, Ayush Doseja, Rahul Dagar, Hrithik Shokeen, Priyansh Arya, Tejasvi Dahiya, Vaibhav Kandpal, Rohan Rana, Aryan Rana (subject to fitness).
Delhi’s Ranji Trophy Fixtures
| Fixture | Date | Venue |
|---|---|---|
| Hyderabad vs Delhi | Oct 15-18 | NexGen Cricket Ground, Hyderabad |
| Delhi vs Himachal Pradesh | Oct 25-28 | Arun Jaitley Stadium, Delhi |
| Delhi vs Puducherry | Nov 1-4 | Arun Jaitley Stadium, Delhi |
| Delhi vs Jammu and Kashmir | Nov 8-11 | Arun Jaitley Stadium, Delhi |
| Rajasthan vs Delhi | Nov 16-19 | Madan Paliwal Miraj Sports Centre, Rajsamand |
| Chhattisgarh vs Delhi | Jan 22-25 | TBC |
| Mumbai vs Delhi | Jan 29-Feb 1 | Sharad Pawar Cricket Academy BKC, Mumbai |
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