KL Rahul and Manish Pandey in Karnataka probable squad for the Ranji Trophy

Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA) has announced a 35 member probable squad for the upcoming season of Ranji Trophy. The squad includes notable players with a lot of experience. KL Rahul and Manish Pandey are also included in the squad as of now as they would be busy playing international cricket for India.

Apart from them, the squad is boasted of Karun Nair, Vinay Kumar, and Abhimanyu Mithun – all of whom have played for India. The out of favour Indian all-rounder, Stuart Binny has also been included in the probable squad. The notable name missing from the squad is of Robin Uthappa who shifted his base to Saurashtra. He was dropped for the quarter-final last year and was also not considered for Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy which prompted him to take such a decision.

Ravikumar Samarth and Krishnappa Gowtham, who toured South Africa with India ‘A’ side are also included in the team. The duo has a great chance to perform well in the upcoming season and stake their claim for the national call-up. They are also selected in the Duleep Trophy which is set to commence from September 7.

KPL performance not to be considered

The announcement of the probable squad came just after the commencement of Karnataka Premier League. This step from KSCA might raise a few eyebrows but it seems that the selectors have made it clear that the selection will not be made on the basis of performances in KPL. The players will have to give their best on a regular basis by performing in the other tournaments regularly.

This season, youngsters are having a great opportunity to seal their places in the side. In the absence of Rahul and Pandey, Karnataka would have to find someone to fill in their shoes quickly as they would be busy in their international assignments. Also, there is a possibility that Karun Nair might get recalled if India selectors decide to give him another chance in Tests.

Karnataka probable squad for the Ranji Trophy:

Rahul K L, Mayank Agarwal, Samarth R, Abhishek Reddy, Pawan K B, Nischal D, Nikin Jose, Manish Pandey, Karun Nair, Shishir Bhavane, Pawan Deshpande, Mir Kaunian Abbas, Kunal Kapoor, Suneel Raju, Amit Verma, Aniruddha A Joshi, Gautam C M (wk), Sharath Srinivas (wk), Stuart T Binny, Shreyas Gopal, Praveen Dubey, David Mathias, Suchith J, Mirtakanth Yadav, Gowtham K, Vinay Kumar R, Mithun A, Arvind S, Prasidh M Krishna, Pradeep T, Ronit More, Prateek Jain, Sharath H S, Arjun Hoysala, Ritesh Bhatkal