Wriddhiman Saha returns, Shami yet to attain match fitness as Bengal announce Ranji Squad

Premier India pacer Mohammed Shami remained sidelined with an ankle injury, while the veteran duo of Wriddhiman Saha and Sudip Chatterjee returned to the Bengal Ranji side for their first two matches.

Shami, who last featured in the 2023 ODI World Cup final, has been recovering from a surgery performed earlier this year.

Shami had expressed interest in playing domestic cricket to assess his fitness before making his return to the international arena.

"If I need to play domestic cricket to test my fitness, I will," Shami had stated.

"What matters most is that I am fully ready for whatever comes next, regardless of the opposition or format." Saha, who made his Bengal debut in 2007, had joined Tripura as a mentor and player following a fallout with the Cricket Association of Bengal officials in 2022.

Under the leadership of captain Anustup Majumdar, the 19-member squad has departed for Lucknow, where they will face Uttar Pradesh in their opening match on October 11. Bengal will then host Bihar in the second round.

Squad: Anustup Majumdar (captain), Abhimanyu Easwaran, Sudip Gharami, Sudip Chatterjee, Wriddhiman Saha, Shahbaz Ahmed, Abishek Porel, Writtick Chatterjee, Avilin Ghosh, Shuvam Dey, Akash Deep, Mukesh Kumar, Suraj Jaiswal, Mohd Kaif, Pradipta Pramanik, Aamir Gani, Yudhajit Guha, Rohit Kumar and Rishav Vivek.