In the match against Jammu & Kashmir, Mumbai benched 17-year-old Ayush Mhatre to make room for Rohit Sharma.
Ayush Mhatre, 17, lost his spot in the starting lineup after making a century in the previous match, which made Rohit Sharma’s return to Mumbai’s Ranji Trophy team problematic. Even though Mhatre has had an incredible season thus far, hitting 441 runs at an average of 40.09 in 6 games, he was forced to start from the bench when experienced Indian players like Rohit Sharma and Yashasvi Jaiswal returned to the Ranji Trophy following the team’s disappointing tour of Australia.After Rohit’s poor batting performance against Jammu & Kashmir in the Ranji Trophy match, supporters ridiculed him on social media for depriving Mhatre of a spot in the Mumbai squad. But the little hitter only had kind things to say about Rohit, the man he looks up to.
“I started playing cricket by watching him bat on TV, and it was an incredible experience to share a changing room with my hero. Mhatre posted a photo of himself with the Hitman along with the caption, “Lot of learning to take forward,” on Instagram.Mhatre made 116 runs against Services in the most recent Ranji Trophy match for Mumbai. In white-ball cricket, he has also turned heads by amassing 458 runs at an average of 65.42 since making his List A debut.
In addition to Rohit, other top Indian players who were representing Mumbai in the Ranji Trophy also struggled. Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shreyas Iyer, Shivam Dube, and even captain Ajinkya Rahane, who is no longer considered for the national squad, did not make an impression either.
Another out-of-sort all-rounder, Shardul Thakur, gave Mumbai a fighting total against J&K with his century in the game.
In its new 10-point directive, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) mandated domestic cricket for players, contingent on availability. In the upcoming match, even Indian cricket legend Virat Kohli will compete for the Ranji Trophy.
