The Delhi & District Cricket Association (DDCA) has announced a 26-man squad for the upcoming Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, with Nitish Rana named as captain, replacing Ayush Badoni, who will feature as a specialist batter.
The squad includes a mix of experienced players and promising youngsters. While the fast-bowling trio of Ishant Sharma, Harshit Rana, and Navdeep Saini will participate subject to availability, U-23 standouts Ankit Rajesh Kumar and Yash Bhatia have earned their spots following strong performances at the junior level.
One of the biggest surprises in the selection was the exclusion of Digvesh Rathi, who had a breakthrough season for Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) in the IPL 2025, taking 14 wickets in 13 matches at an average of 30.64 and an economy rate of 8.25. Nevertheless, the squad still features IPL talent including Suyash Sharma, Simarjeet Singh, Anuj Rawat, and Prince Yadav.
Delhi has been placed in Elite Group D for the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, with all matches scheduled in Ahmedabad. They will face Jharkhand in their opening game, while other group opponents include Uttarakhand, Tripura, Rajasthan, Karnataka, Saurashtra, and Tamil Nadu.
Delhi recently drew a Ranji Trophy match against Rajasthan at the Madan Paliwal Miraj Sports Centre. The team currently sits sixth in their Ranji group with eight points from five matches, yet they are still seeking their first win in the country’s premier domestic red-ball competition.
Delhi squad for SMAT 2025: Nitish Rana (C), Arpit Rana, Priyansh Arya, Sarthak Ranjan, Ayush Badoni, Ayush Doseja, Mayank Rawat, Tejasvi, Anuj Rawat, Yash Dhull, Himmat Singh, Simarjeet Singh, Rahul Dagar, Yash Bhatia, Ankit Rajesh Kumar, Harsh Tyagi, Suyash Sharma, Prince Yadav, Money Grewal, Rohan Rana, Dhruv Kaushik, Aryan Rana, Vaibhav Khandpal.
