Rested Indian Duo to Start in Ranji Trophy Opener
Sep 29, 2017 at 6:03 PM
The 2017-18 Ranji Trophy will witness a star-studded start as Test stars Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Cheteshwar Pujara and Murali Vijay are likely to play the first round of matches.
As learnt Ashwin and Vijay have informed the Tamil Nadu Cricket Association about their availability while Jadeja and Pujara have been named in the 15-man Saurashtra squad for their first match against Haryana in Lahli from October 6.
All four players will play in India after a considerable gap of time. Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja got omitted from the limited-leg of the tour of Sri Lanka and the ongoing series against Australia as a part of the rotation policy.
Ashwin made the most of the opportunity by travelling to England for County stint. He played a key role helping Worcestershire win the Division Two title and also attain a promotion in the county championship. His tour stats read a fantastic 214 runs at an average of 42.8 and 20 wickets, including two five-fors.
Jadeja’s last played in the Test series in Sri Lanka and got rested for the ODI series. He was briefly recalled to the squad in place of the injured Axar Patel against Australia but was overlooked for the last two ODIs. The two spinners, however, may miss the Ranji opportunity if they get selected for the three-match T20I series against Australia beginning on October 7.
Saurashtra coach Sitanshu Kotak has stated Jadeja is expected to join the squad on September 30 while Pujara will join the team after returning to India by the end of the month after finishing his commitments with Nottinghamshire. Vijay is also set to play after the lengthy layoff forced by surgery for a wrist injury suffered during the Border-Gavaskar Trophy in March.
He made his comeback from the injury in Tamil Nadu Premier League and also appeared for India Green in the Duleep Trophy.
“I am looking forward to playing for India soon,” Vijay told ESPNcricinfo. Tamil Nadu will open their campaign against Andhra at the MA Chidambaram Stadium.