Shreyas Iyer Set to Lead Mumbai in Vijay Hazare’s Decisive Matches

Due to Shardul Thakur’s absence caused by a calf injury, Shreyas Iyer will captain Mumbai in the remaining group stage matches of the Vijay Hazare Trophy.

Shreyas joined the Mumbai squad on Monday and engaged in an extensive training session at the Jaipuria Vidyalaya grounds, supervised by coaches Omkar Salvi and Atul Ranade. He appeared at ease while batting against fast bowling and participated in catching drills. “With Shardul still on the mend, Shreyas has been chosen to lead the team in the final two group stage games,” confirmed Mumbai’s chief selector Sanjay Patil to Sportstar.

During Monday’s session, Shreyas seemed confident during sprints and catching drills, as captured by Emmanuel Yogini.

Although India’s T20I captain Suryakumar Yadav is expected to play in the upcoming matches against Himachal Pradesh and Punjab, Mumbai’s selectors assigned the captaincy to Shreyas, who holds the position of vice-captain for India’s ODI team.

This marks Shreyas’s return to competitive cricket following his recovery from a spleen injury sustained during India’s tour of Australia last October. After spending 10 days at the CoE for the final phase of his rehabilitation, he successfully completed match simulation, participating in a practice game last week without any discomfort.

Shreyas is included in India’s ODI squad for the home series against New Zealand, contingent upon his fitness. While training with the Mumbai team, he appeared comfortable during sprints and catching exercises.

Meanwhile, Shardul is advised to rest for the remainder of the group stage, and Sarfaraz Khan will rejoin the team against Himachal after recovering from quadriceps pain that caused him to miss the game against Maharashtra. Despite normal scan results, the 28-year-old practiced extensively in the nets alongside his brother Musheer Khan.

Mumbai has also welcomed off-spinner Shashank Attarde to the squad. Currently placed second in Elite Group C with 16 points from five matches, Mumbai aims to secure at least one victory and improve its Net Run Rate (1.293) to advance to the knockouts.

Published on Jan 05, 2026.