Rohit set to play for Mumbai in Vijay Hazare Trophy
Rohit Sharma is set to make himself available for the Vijay Hazare Trophy (VHT) group stage, which will be held between December 24, 2025 and January 8, 2026. Mumbai has been placed in Group C, alongside Maharashtra, Punjab, and Goa among others, and will play its fixtures in Jaipur.
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) had mandated earlier in the year that players must feature in domestic cricket, when not on national duty.
Mumbai’s chief selector Sanjay Patil confirmed to Sportstar that he is yet to formally hear from the former India captain about his participation in the VHT and the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy (SMAT).
“Formally, I have not heard anything from Rohit yet. But I will be more than happy if he plays for Mumbai. It will be a huge gain for us,” Patil told Sportstar on Wednesday.
If Rohit does make himself available for SMAT, he is likely to play only in the knockout stages, provided Mumbai qualify. The Mushtaq Ali Trophy group league will be played between November 26 and December 8, while the knockouts will be held in Indore from December 12 to 18. During the group stage, India will be busy in a three-match ODI series against South Africa.
Earlier this year, following the BCCI diktat, Rohit and Virat Kohli both featured in a Ranji Trophy game for Mumbai and Delhi, respectively. The pair is currently active only in ODIs.
Now, with both wanting to continue till the 2027 ODI World Cup, they need to feature in the Vijay Hazare Trophy regularly, and Patil believes that if players of Rohit and Virat’s calibre feature in the domestic tournaments, the teams will benefit. “They are role models for the young cricketers, so it would be wonderful if they play. It will boost the morale and motivate the youngsters, if they get to share the dressing room with such players,” Patil said.
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“We could win 42 titles for Mumbai because the younger players always had the backing of the seniors. In the earlier times, legends like Dilip Vengsarkar, Ravi Shastri, Sachin Tendulkar, and Sanjay Manjrekar always made themselves available, whenever they were not on national duty. So, we would be really happy if Rohit plays for Mumbai…” he said.
From January 11, India will be engaged in a three-match ODI series against New Zealand. If Rohit makes it to the Indian team, he will have to give the Vijay Hazare knockouts, which starts from January 12, a miss.
It is also likely that Suryakumar Yadav and Shivam Dube will feature in the domestic white-ball tournaments once India’s assignment against South Africa is over. Last week, as Mumbai played its home Ranji Trophy game against Himachal Pradesh at the MCA-BKC ground, Rohit trained at the venue for nearly an hour.
“Thanks to the BCCI for taking such an initiative, because if Rohit plays, youngsters like Ayush Mhatre and Musheer Khan can pick his brains and also follow his footsteps, which will be a big thing for the game,” Patil added.
Kotian returns
In another development, spinner Tanush Kotian will return to Mumbai’s Ranji Trophy squad against Pondicherry. Kotian missed out on the last couple of games due to his commitments with India-A team. In his absence, Himanshu Singh was drafted in.
Published on Nov 12, 2025
