Delhi-handed! Selectors pick jumbo squad without picking one; Virat Kohli, Rishabh Pant in

New Delhi: There are rumours within the Delhi and District Cricket Association (DDCA) that International Cricket Council (ICC) chief Jay Shah, on his visit to Arun Jaitley Stadium to felicitate Lionel Messi with India jersey and India-USA match ticket for the ICC T20 World Cup, had questioned the association over Delhi jumbo squads that were being sent over the past few years for domestic tournaments.

While there has been no confirmation about such a thing taking place, some highly-placed sources have informed about it with certainty.

So, the selectors on Friday decided to restrict the squad to 16 to avoid any criticism although they went on to pick 21 players.  

To hoodwink the public and everyone, they listed only 16 players in the squad but mentioned the names of five internationals at the top of the note.

The names of Virat Kohli, Ishant Sharma, Rishabh Pant, Harshit Rana and Navdeep Saini have been mentioned in the introduction with the DDCA stating that they have made themselves available.

“Mr Rishabh Pant, Mr Virat Kohli, Mr Ishant Sharma, and Mr Navdeep Saini have confirmed their availability and will be part of the team. Mr Rishabh Pant is appointed as the captain of the team. Mr Harshit Rana shall join the squad as and when he becomes available,” said a statement from the DDCA.

Then the release goes on to mention the names of 16 players picked in the team.

The DDCA may have taken the decision to ensure backup in case the international stars decide to skip some games. However, the process of listing the players was a work of ingenuity! There are just 16 players in the list!

Delhi play their first match on December 24 against Andhra at the Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru. Virat Kohli is likely to play the first two matches. Rishabh Pant will captain the team most likely for all the matches.

There have been questions over the selections too.

Delhi have not included Money Grewal who is one of the best pace bowlers in the Capital at the moment and was being seriously considered by some franchises for the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 auction.

Surprisingly, the selectors have included three wicketkeepers. Apart from Pant, there is also in-form Tejasvi Dahiya who has earned a rich IPL deal from Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR). Anuj Rawat is the third wicketkeeper.

Wicketkeeper-batsman Lakshay Thareja who had a great time in the trial games, making 70 off 64 balls in one match and 78 not out off 48 balls in the other, was not picked. Thareja doesn’t seem to have any backing in the DDCA. He struggled to get a deal in the Delhi Premier League (DPL) 2025 initially at the auction and was called up only as a replacement by New Delhi Tigers’ skipper Himmat Singh. He dazzled in the DPL.

The team has quite a few spin-bowling options. Rohan Rana is the only pace-bowling all-round option.

The meeting was attended by selectors Yashpal Singh, Bhaskar Pillai and Manu Nayyar; Chief Coach Sarandeep Singh; CAC Member Robin Singh Jr; Secretary Ashok Sharma and Joint Secretary Amit Grover.

It should be noted that the DDCA Ombudsman MM Kumar recently sought response from the DDCA over both Secretary and Joint Secretary attending the selection meeting in contravention to an earlier order.

Delhi Squad for Vijay Hazare Trophy: Rishabh Pant (captain and WK)), Virat Kohli, Ishant Sharma, Navdeep Saini, Harshit Rana, Ayush Badoni (vice-captain), Arpit Rana, Yash Dhull, Sarthak Ranjan, Priyansh Arya, Tejasvi Dahiya (WK), Nitish Rana, Hrithik Shokeen, Harsh Tyagi, Simarjeet Singh, Prince Yadav, Divij Mehra, Ayush Doseja, Vaibhav Kandpal, Rohan Rana, Anuj Rawat (WK).

Tags : Virat Kohli, Rishabh Pant, Ishant Sharma, Harshit Rana, Delhi, cricket, Vijay Hazare Trophy