Published: January 14, 2026 at 10:22 pm
Indian pacer Mohammed Siraj, in a baffling – more of a shocking – move, was on Wednesday named as captain of the Ranji Trophy team by the Hyderabad senior selectors. Hyderabad take on Mumbai from January 22 to 25 and meet Chhattisgarh from January 29 to February 1. Both games are to be played in Hyderabad.
Hyderabad are placed fourth with 13 points in Group D, which is led by Mumbai, who have 24 points to their credit. Hyderabad have won one game and lost one, while the remaining three games were drawn affairs.
What has come as a surprise is that Siraj has not led any Hyderabad side before. As such naming him to lead the Hyderabad team against Mumbai has come as a shock. Siraj is known for his exceptional skills with the ball and is a fighter to the core. But captaincy is a different ball game and something not every player is capable of. Some of the great players too have failed to come to terms with captaincy – one of them being the legendary Sachin Tendulkar.
Hence, the selectors naming Siraj to lead the side when two senior players – Rahul and Milind – are in the squad does not make much sense. At the start of the season, the selectors had named India player Tilak Varma as the captain and G Rahul Singh as the vice-captain with the understanding that when Tilak is not available, Rahul will lead the side. But now Rahul, after leading the side in four games, is again vice-captain to Siraj. Is that fair to Rahul? Are the selectors not happy with the way he has handled the team?
Rahul Singh has scored 376 runs in Ranji Trophy this season with a century and two half-centuries
When Rahul opted out of the T20 matches, Milind was given charge of the team for the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy and he did quite well as Hyderabad had a dream run in the tournament. Milind’s injury changed the equations in the Vijay Hazare Trophy and Hyderabad had three players – Rahul, Milind and Tilak – leading the team in the tournament. Hyderabad fared badly in the tournament, losing five of the seven matches they played.
We wanted to bring some fresh energy to the side, so opted for Siraj: Harimohan
When asked about the captaincy muddle, P Harimohan, chairman of the senior selection committee, said they wanted to bring some new ideas and enthusiasm to the side. “We thought we could be better served with some fresh energy as it is a big game. Siraj is enthusiastic about leadership, and we felt he could bring fresh ideas to the table and that’s why we opted for him for the next two Ranji Trophy games,” Harimohan told Khel Khiladis.com on Wednesday.
Harimohan defended the move and said some changes in captaincy during the season were done due to external factors. ““Yes, we have had a few captains this season, but it was mostly because of external factors like unavailability of players and injuries. Tilak Varma was named the captain but after the first Ranji game, he was not available and hence G Rahul Singh took over, and he has done a commendable job. We have no complaints about his leadership qualities,” he said.
He said that they had no choice but to go in for a new captain for the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy as Rahul had opted out of the T20 tournament. “With Rahul opting out, we had to go in for a new skipper and that’s where CV Milind came in. We had a terrific run in the tournament and Milind handled the team quite well. But unfortunately, he was injured during the last part of the tournament,” he added.
“We had thought of continuing with Milind in white ball cricket, but his injury meant that we had to ask Rahul, as no one else was available, to lead the side in the Vijay Hazare Trophy. Milind came back to lead the side, but we lost four games in a trot. And Tilak was available for us, so he led the side, and we did well against Chhattisgarh and Bengal,” Harimohan said.
CV Milind led the Hyderabad side well in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy before he suffered an injury
“Now that we are back to red ball cricket, we wanted to get some new ideas to the table. Siraj, we feel, fits the bill and, therefore, he has been named the skipper,” he added.
Siraj is a fantastic player but making him captain is a foolhardly move: David
But not everyone is enthusiastic about the move. They don’t have anything against Siraj but feel that there will be undue pressure on the pacer in such a crucial game.
“No disrespect to Siraj as he is an international cricketer. He is a fantastic player and is passionate about the game. He has done yeoman service for India and also done his bit for Hyderabad whenever he was available. But giving him the burden of captaincy is not a correct move by the selectors. What are they trying to prove? It is a crucial match against Mumbai, and you have a new captain to lead the team. This is a foolhardly move,” former India and Hyderabad player Noel David told Khel Khiladis.com.
“I would, any day, prefer CV Milind as he has proved himself not only in white ball cricket this season but has also led Hyderabad in red ball cricket before. Rahul too has not done bad. How many captains are we going to have this season? One cannot chop and change captains and hope for fantastic results,” he added.
Hyderabad squad: Md Siraj (captain), G Rahul Singh (VC), C V Milind, Tanay Thyagarajan, K Rohit Rayudu, K Himateja, A Varun Goud, M Abhirath Reddy, Rahul Radesh (WK), Aman Rao Perala, CTL Rakshann Readdi, N Nitin Sai Yadav, Kanala Nitesh Reddy, Sai Pragnay Reddy (WK), B Punnaiah. Standbyes: Mickil Jaiswal, A Avanish Rao (WK), Kartikeya Kak, Pranav Varma, P Nitish Reddy.
