Mohammad Azharuddeen to lead Kerala on tour to Oman; Sanju Samson, Sachin Baby to miss out due to IPL

Mohammad Azharuddeen has been named as the captain of the men's cricket team of Kerala which is set to tour Oman to play five practice games against their national side. The 16-member side don't include the likes of Sanju Samson and Sachin Baby among others due to their commitment for their respective Indian Premier League franchises.    

The five ODI games will be played from April 20 to April 26. Before making their way to Oman from Thiruvananthapuram on April 19, a preparatory camp will be held in Thiruvananthapuram from April 15 to April 18 under former Indian cricketer and head coach of Kerala, Amay Khurasiya.

As far as Kerala's recent performances are concerned, they impressed in the 2024-25 edition of the Ranji Trophy by reaching the final of India's premier domestic red-ball competition. A stellar campaign came to an unfortunate end with the Baby-led outfit missing out on clinching their maiden Ranji Trophy title due to Vidarbha winning the summit clash based on their first innings lead.

Samson missed the Ranji Trophy due to commitments with the national setup and fitness-related issues. He is currently leading the Rajasthan Royals. Baby is a part of the Sunrisers Hyderabad. Vignesh Puthur and Vishnu Vinod miss out as well. The two are in the Mumbai Indians and Punjab Kings, respectively. 

Veteran guest players like Jalaj Saxena and Aditya Sarwate were not included in the mix as the Kerala Cricket Association opted to constitute the squad with only players who belong to Kerala to provide them with top-notch exposure for the future.

Also Read: Who is Mohammed Azharuddeen? All you need to know about star Kerala batter

Kerala's squad for tour to Oman: Rohan Kunnummal, Ahammed Imran, Salman Nizar, Mohammed Azharuddeen M, Shoun Roger, Govind Dev D Pai, Abhishek P Nair, Abdul Bazith P A, Akshay Manohar, Sharafuddeen N M, Nidheesh M D, Basil N P, Edhen Apple Tom, Sreehari S Nair, Biju Narayan N, Manav Krishna