Ishan Kishan played in the DY Patil T20 tournament for the Reserve Bank of India.
Shreyas Iyer has recovered from the back spasms that kept him out of the quarter-final against Baroda. He will play for Mumbai in the Ranji Trophy semi-finals. Ishan Kishan also made his return to competitive cricket on Tuesday, playing for the Reserve Bank of India in the DY Patil T20 tournament - a popular corporate tournament featuring top domestic players - in Navi Mumbai.
Shivam Dube will continue to be sidelined with a side strain as he races against time to be fit for the IPL, where he will play for Chennai Super Kings.
Iyer and Kishan have come under the spotlight after India captain Rohit Sharma said on Monday that players who have the desire and performance to play Tests will be given priority in the selection process. Iyer, who had been selected for the first two Tests of the ongoing five-match England series, was dropped for the final three Tests. Kishan's situation became more intriguing after he took a personal break in late December and then chose not to participate in the Ranji Trophy. In the DY Patil T20 match, Kishan scored 19 runs off 12 balls.
Iyer was supposed to play in the quarter-final, which Mumbai won based on a first-innings lead, but had to miss the match as a precautionary measure. This is Iyer's second Ranji fixture this season, following the match against Andhra in December before the England series.
Iyer is not currently part of the Test squad after being left out following India's series-levelling win in Visakhapatnam. In his last four Test innings, he scored 29, 27, 13, and 35. During Iyer's absence, his Mumbai teammate Sarfaraz Khan was awarded a Test cap in Rajkot, where he started with twin half-centuries.
Iyer allayed fears of a recurring injury with his return for the semi-final against Tamil Nadu. Last year, he underwent back surgery and missed the entire IPL. He rejoined the ODI team for the Asia Cup and played a crucial role in India's World Cup campaign, which saw them finish as runners-up. Iyer scored 530 runs in 11 innings, including two centuries and three half-centuries. He is scheduled to captain Kolkata Knight Riders in the 2024 IPL, where he will be working with Chandrakant Pandit for the first time since he was appointed as head coach. The Knight Riders have also enlisted former captain Gautam Gambhir as a team mentor.
In Kishan's absence, India first recalled KS Bharat for the Test before handing Dhruv Jurel his first Test cap. Jurel was named Player of the Match for his 90 and 39 in Ranchi, where India took an unassailable 3-1 lead in the five-Test series. Earlier this month, Kishan trained with IPL captain Hardik Pandya at a private facility in Baroda.
Mumbai squad for semi-final:
Ajinkya Rahane (capt), Shreyas Iyer, Prithvi Shaw, Bhupen Lalwani, Amogh Bhatkal, Musheer Khan, Prasad Pawar, Hardik Tamore, Shardul Thakur, Shams Mulani, Tanush Kotian, Aditya Dhumal, Tushar Deshpande, Mohit Avasthi, Royston Dias, Dhawal Kulkarn.