Xtra Time Web Desk: Team India U-19 captain Yash Dhull gets his maiden call up in Delhi squad to the premier tournament Ranji trophy, starting later this month. However senior pacer Ishant Sharma had made himself unavailable for the selection. Ishant’s absense took everyone by surprise, considering India are set to play a 2-Test series against Sri Lanka at home in March.
Yash Dhull’s selection comes after several of his teammates, including Raj Bawa and Harnoor Pannu, getting picked in their respective state sides besides for the Ranji Trophy campaign. Dhull led India to U19 World Cup title in West Indies earlier this month as India defeated England in the final.
The Dhull-led India U-19 side was felicitated by BCCI in Ahmedabad on Wednesday during the second ODI against West Indies.
“His confidence is high and even though he hasn’t played a lot of red-ball matches, we want him to get a taste of first-class cricket,” a selector told the Press Trust of India.
With his future uncertain in the Indian team, veteran pacer Ishant has communicated to DDCA president Rohan Jaitley that he is not available for selection for the state team.
Left-arm pacer Pradeep Sangwan will captain the side. India pacer Navdeep Saini is also part of the squad.
Squad: Pradeep Sangwan (captain), Nitish Rana, Dhruv Shorey, Priyansh Arya, Yash Dhull, Khsitij Sharma, Jonty Sidhu, Himmat Singh, Lalit Yadav, Anuj Rawat (wicketkeeper), Lakshay Thareja wk, Navdeep Saini, Simarjit Singh, Mayank Yadav, Kuldeep Yadav, Vikas Mishra, Shivang Vashist, Shivam Sharma.