Shardul Thakur is all set to lead defending champions Mumbai in the upcoming edition of the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2025. The experienced all-rounder will have a strong team at his disposal with stalwarts like Ajinkya Rahane, Suryakumar Yadav, and Shivam Dube being in the ranks.

Last year, Mumbai won the T20 competition under Shreyas Iyer's leadership. However, the right-handed batter has been ruled out of action for the rest of the year after sustaining a ruptured spleen during the ODI series against Australia in October.

Shardul has been leading Mumbai in this year's Ranji Trophy campaign. Under his leadership, Mumbai decimated Puducherry earlier this year, winning the match by an innings and 22 runs. Mumbai are placed at the top of Elite Group D in the country's premier domestic red-ball competition.

Coming back to the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, Mumbai's side includes wicketkeepers Angkrish Raghuvanshi and Hardik Tamore, along with India fast bowler Tushar Deshpande and spin-bowling all-rounder Tanush Kotian. Raghuvanshi, who plays for Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) as a specialist batter, has been impressing the fans with his wicketkeeping skills.

Tushar Deshpande has already represented teams like Chennai Super Kings and Rajasthan Royals in the IPL. Whereas Tanush Kotian featured in the recent unofficial Test matches between India A and South Africa A.

Siddhesh Lad, who has scored 530 runs in five matches with three centuries and a fifty in the first leg of the Ranji Trophy this season, is also named in the squad.

Two-time champions Mumbai begin their campaign on Wednesday, November 26, as they face Railways. These two teams are placed in Elite Group A alongside Odisha, Vidarbha, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh, and Chhattisgarh.

Mumbai's squad for SMAT 2025: Shardul Thakur (C), Hardik Tamore (WK), Angkrish Raghuvanshi (WK), Ajinkya Rahane, Ayush Mhatre, Suryakumar Yadav, Sarfaraz Khan, Siddhesh Lad, Shivam Dube, Sairaj Patil, Musheer Khan, Suryansh Shedge, Atharva Ankolekar, Tanush Kotian, Shams Mulani, Tushar Deshpande, Irfan Umair.