Formidable Mumbai got a major boost for the crucial semi-final of the Vijay Hazare Trophy tournament with the availability of three top players, two of whom missed the whole or part of the league phase.
Rohit Sharma, teenage sensation Prithvi Shaw and seasoned batsman Ajinkya Rahane are the three batsmen who will turn out for Mumbai in the semi-finals. Of these, Sharma, who played in the quarter-finals of the ODI tournament, will be available for at least the semis along with Shaw and Rahane, who both featured in the victorious Test squad against the West Indies.
Mumbai’s chief selector and former India pacer Ajit Agarkar confirmed that all the three players were available to play in the semis. Mumbai crushed Bihar by nine wickets in a lop-sided affair in the quarter-finals.
Shaw had played in the initial part of the tournament for the domestic giants before making a spectacular debut in the Test series against the Windies, where he picked up the man of the series award too. The semi-finals will be played on October 17 and 18.
Mumbai’s opponents will be decided after the other two semi-finals conclude later on Monday. The five-match ODI series against West Indies begins on October 21 with the first match scheduled at Guwahati. Rohit Sharma is named as vice-captain for the first two matches of the series, the squad for which was announced earlier.
