19-year-old Ayush Mhatre has been appointed Mumbai’s vice-captain for the Ranji Trophy 2026-27 season. The Mumbai Cricket Association announced the 16-member squad on Monday (October 9), with Siddhesh Lad set to lead the team, including the likes of Yashasvi Jaiswal and Sarfaraz Khan.

In 13 first-class matches, Mhatre has scored  660 runs at an average of 30. He is one of the best young cricketers in the country, and it seems Mumbai have taken inspiration from Bihar’s move of making the 15-year-old Vaibhav Sooryavanshi their vice-captain in the Ranji Trophy.

In a major setback for the 2026 T20 World Cup-winning captain Suryakumar Yadav, the selectors ignored him despite the player making himself available for the entire season. The right-handed batter was dropped from the national team and also sacked as skipper soon after the tournament.

Mumbai chief selector Rajesh Pawar said the panel wanted to give opportunities to youngsters. He kept the door open for one of the most experienced Mumbai players but told him to play some red-ball matches. The 36-year-old last played a red-ball match for Mumbai against Vidarbha in 2025.

Jaiswal will play only a few matches, following instructions from the Board of Control for Cricket in India to play the longest format ahead of the Test tour of New Zealand.

All-rounder Shardul Thakur will also miss matches due to a hand injury.

Mumbai’s Ranji Trophy Squad

Siddhesh Lad (C), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Ayush Mhatre (VC), Divyansh Saxena, Musheer Khan, Sarfaraz Khan, Suved Parkar, Aakash Anand (WK), Hardik Tamore (WK), Shams Mulani, Tanush Kotian, Atharva Ankolekar, Tushar Deshpande, Mohit Awasthi, Sylvester Dsouza, Onkar Tarmale.