India captain Suryakumar Yadav to play under Sarfaraz Khan for Mumbai at Buchi Babu Invitational Tournament

India's T20I captain Suryakumar Yadav is set to don the Mumbai colours once again, as the cricketer's presence has been confirmed by the Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA).

The dynamic batter will be participating in the upcoming Buchi Babu Invitational Multi-day Tournament. This domestic tournament will be India's domestic season opener. Historically, it has seen participation from Test stars and even India captains, including Krishnamachari Srikkanth, Sourav Ganguly, and Mohammad Azharuddin.

Suryakumar's involvement is expected to inject fresh energy into the competition and potentially attract more high-profile players. The 33-year-old will feature in MCA XI's second match against Tamil Nadu Cricket Association XI, scheduled from August 27-30 in Coimbatore.

The state association had recently announced their squad for the upcoming domestic tournament, and prolific batter Sarfaraz Khan was named as the leader of the 17-member squad. Yadav, who was not initially announced in the squad, will now be playing under Sarfaraz's captaincy.

Also read: Sarfaraz Khan given Mumbai captaincy for domestic tournament

His decision to play comes during a break in the international cricket calendar, with India's next assignment, a two-match Test series against Bangladesh, not starting until September 19. An official from the Mumbai Cricket Association confirmed the cricketer's involvement.

“Suryakumar will play the second match for Mumbai,” he said, as quoted by News18.

He wants to play in all three formats for India: MCA official 

Another MCA official, speaking anonymously, said that the cricketer is eyeing to play in all formats for the nation and this is one step towards that. He also opened up about Yadav's availability for Mumbai whenever free.

“Surya wants to play in all three formats for India and as he has always been available for Mumbai whenever free, it won’t be otherwise this year too,” an official said.

Suryakumar's participation is not just about personal goals. His presence is expected to have a motivational impact on younger players in the team. 

“He will play tourneys like Buchi Babu, KSCA (Gold Cup) apart from Ranji Trophy where his presence will also motivate the youngsters in the team,” an MCA source told.

Also read: MCA confirms Ajinkya Rahane as Mumbai skipper for Irani Cup 2024

The tournament, set to be held across four venues in Tamil Nadu: Tirunelveli, Salem, Coimbatore, and Natham will see Suryakumar playing under the captaincy of Sarfaraz Khan.