Shreyas Iyer to take field for Mumbai on last day of Ranji Trophy final

Iyer, who was the seventh highest run-scorer in the 50-overs World Cup last year with 530 runs at 66.25 with two tons and three fifties, had played one Ranji game for Mumbai against Andhra from February 12-15 here at the BKC Ground.

Mumbai batter Shreyas Iyer will take the field on the fifth and final day of the Ranji Trophy summit clash against Vidarbha on Thursday, after back trouble kept him out of action on the penultimate day here.

Having scored a quickfire 95 on the third day of the final at the Wankhede Stadium to bolster Mumbai's claim for a 42nd title win, Iyer did not take the field for the entire duration of the fourth day's play on Wednesday while his team was made to work hard by a defiant Vidarbha side.

Vidarbha showed grit and resilience to push the game into the fifth and final day, reaching 248 for five in an improbable chase of 538 runs to win.

A team source confirmed to PTI after stumps on day four that Iyer has recovered from the back-related trouble and will be available to take the field on the last day of this Ranji Trophy season.

Iyer, who had missed the Ranji Trophy quarterfinal between Mumbai and Baroda, had flopped with the bat in the only innings in the semifinal against Tamil Nadu but bounced back remarkably in the final.

Putting on 168 runs at a fair clip with Musheer Khan in Mumbai's second innings, Iyer went the aggressive route to hammer 10 fours and three sixes in his 111-ball 95.

However, during his innings on Tuesday, Iyer received on-field treatment on his back on two instances, having spent a considerable time in the middle.

The 29-year-old has been in the spotlight ever since he was excluded from the Indian Test side for the last three matches of their recently-concluded five-Test series against England.

Lacking big scores and also struggling with stiffness in his back, Iyer was not named in the Indian team for the final three Tests. He also opted out of Mumbai's quarterfinal. Ahead of the third Test at Rajkot from February 15-19, BCCI secretary Jay Shah in an interaction with the media had warned of taking a tough stance on players who are not available to play red-ball domestic matches if they are not on national duty.

The tough stance resulted in Iyer and wicketkeeper-batter Ishan Kishan not being considered for the BCCI's annual player retainership for period between October 2023 to September 2024. Iyer, who was the seventh highest run-scorer in the 50-overs World Cup last year with 530 runs at 66.25 with two tons and three fifties, had played one Ranji game for Mumbai against Andhra from February 12-15 here at the BKC Ground.

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