NEW DELHI: India batter Shreyas Iyer was appointed Mumbai's captain for the remainder of the Vijay Hazare Trophy on Monday, stepping in after regular skipper Shardul Thakur was sidelined with an injury.
The appointment marks Iyer's return to competitive action following a lengthy spell on the sidelines, having sustained a spleen laceration with internal bleeding during the third ODI against Australia in Sydney in October last year.
"Shardul has suffered an injury and has been advised to rest. We have other players such as Shivam Dube and Suryakumar Yadav available, and Shreyas Iyer has been named the Mumbai captain for remaining matches," Mumbai chief selector Sanjay Patil told PTI on Monday without specifying the nature of Thakur's injury.
Subject to clearing fitness requirements, Iyer - India's designated ODI vice-captain - has also been included in the squad for the upcoming three-match ODI series against New Zealand, which begins in Vadodara on January 11.
The series will then move to Rajkot for the second ODI on January 14, before concluding with the final match in Indore on January 18.
MCA secretary Dr Unmesh Khanvilkar said in a release, "Shreyas Iyer will take over the leadership responsibilities in place of Shardul Thakur, who has been ruled out of the tournament due to injury and is currently unavailable for selection."
Iyer will lead Mumbai in their Group C match against Himachal Pradesh on Tuesday followed by the contest against Punjab on January 8.
The Vijay Hazare Trophy's knockout matches will be played at the Centre of Excellence in Bengaluru from January 12-18.
