Delhi has named its 18-member squad for the first two games of the upcoming Ranji Trophy season, with Virat Kohli and Rishabh Pant naturally excluded from the list despite being part of the 84-member probable squad. Delhi will face Chhattisgarh and Tamil Nadu in their opening fixtures, with Kohli and Pant’s exclusion coming as no surprise given their commitments to the Indian team.

No Kohli and Pant for Delhi

Virat Kohli, who is currently a two-format player for India, last represented his state side in the 2012-13 season. With the batter now 35 and coming off a packed international schedule, including an upcoming Test series against New Zealand starting October 16, his rest days have become a priority. Meanwhile, Delhi begins their Ranji Trophy campaign on October 11, leading to Kohli’s exclusion from the squad.

Similarly, Rishabh Pant, having been active in cricket since his IPL 2024 comeback, has been given rest by the BCCI. The wicketkeeper-batter, pivotal to India’s Test team, will sit out the T20Is against Bangladesh.

Simarjeet Singh’s Fitness Under the Scanner

Another key name, CSK pacer Simarjeet Singh, is only included conditionally—dependent on his fitness clearance. He had a stellar performance in the Delhi Premier League T20 2024, taking 18 wickets with a bowling strike rate of 12.00. However, if he is deemed unfit, Divij Mehra will replace him.

Notable Absence of Priyansh Arya

Despite stellar performances in the DPL T20, where he amassed 608 runs with a strike rate of 198.7 and an average of 67.5, Priyansh Arya was left out of the Ranji squad. His six sixes in a single DPL match were eye-catching, but Delhi’s lineup features other batting talents.

Delhi’s Squad for First Two Ranji Games

• Himmat Singh (C), Ayush Badoni, Anuj Rawat (W.K), Sanat Sangwan, Dhruv Kaushik, Yash Dhull, Jonty Sidhu, Mayank Rawat, Kshitiz Sharma, Pranav Rajuvanshi (W.K), Sumit Mathur, Navdeep Saini, Himanshu Chauhan, Simarjeet Singh* / Divij Mehra, Hrithik Shokeen, Harsh Tyagi, Money Grewal, Shivank Vashisth

Note: If Simarjeet Singh is unfit, Divij Mehra will replace him. Any unfit player will not travel or remain with the team until cleared by the Physio.

Drawn in the Elite Group A of the Ranji Trophy, Delhi faces tough competition against teams like Tamil Nadu and Saurashtra as they kick off their campaign.