Mumbai will begin their Vijay Hazare Trophy campaign without one of their biggest names, with Rohit Sharma missing the first few matches of the tournament. The decision has drawn attention, especially from fans eager to see senior Indian players return to domestic cricket during a rare international break.
Rohit’s absence is not related to injury or workload concerns from the Indian team setup. Instead, it is a conscious call taken by the Mumbai selectors, who want to use the early phase of the 50-over competition to assess and blood the younger players in competitive conditions. Mumbai chief selector Sanjay Patil explained the decision behind keeping Rohit and several other senior names out of the opening matches. Speaking to PTI, Patil emphasized that the driving factor was experimentation rather than unavailability.
“Rohit, Jaiswal, Dube and even Rahane will not be part of the Mumbai squad for at least the first two matches as the selection committee will continue with a young squad.
“Yashasvi is getting treatment for his stomach and should be fine soon. We thought the youngsters should get a chance. But whenever they are available they will be accommodated. We are experimenting with the youngsters for the first two games.”
The elite division of the Vijay Hazare Trophy will run from December 24 to January 8, with matches spread across Ahmedabad, Rajkot, Jaipur and Bengaluru. The knockout stages will follow at the Center of Excellence in Bengaluru from January 12 to 18. Mumbai have been placed in Group C alongside Punjab, Uttarakhand, Sikkim, Chhattisgarh, Maharashtra, Goa and Himachal Pradesh and will begin their campaign against Sikkim on December 24.
Rohit’s absence came at a time when India are not scheduled to play any ODIs until January 11 when they face New Zealand in a three-match series. With this gap, the Vijay Hazare Trophy was seen as an ideal platform for the senior players to stay in touch with the match game, build rhythm and maintain fitness during the break in international action, especially with the 2027 ODI World Cup in mind.
This expectation was reinforced by reality that Virat Kohli will represent Delhi in the tournament. While Kohli’s return to domestic cricket has excited fans, Rohit sat out the opening matches in Mumbai and disappointed some supporters. For now, though, the Mumbai selectors seem determined to follow through on their plan to first showcase the youngsters with the option of bringing their senior stars back into play as the tournament progresses.
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Issued by:
Debodinna Chakraborty
Published on:
December 20, 2025
