Four emerging players from Mumbai are taking part in the Delhi Capitals selection trials, which opened Monday and run through Wednesday at the Just Cricket Academy in Bengaluru.
The assessments are being conducted by the franchise’s new coaching team, which includes former India captain Sourav Ganguly, 2011 World Cup winner Yuvraj Singh and former India leg-spinner Amit Mishra. According to team officials, Ganguly is expected to be appointed head coach, Yuvraj as batting coach and Mishra as spin bowling coach.
Delhi Capitals selection trials spotlight Mumbai talent
The Mumbai contingent comprises seam-bowling all-rounder Ayush Vartak, batter Ayaz Khan, opener Divyaansh Saksena and leg-spinner Vedant Gore.
Ayaz drew notice after topping the batting averages in last season’s BCCI Under-23 One-Day Tournament with 204. The 23-year-old struck 104 off 54 balls, including eight sixes and eight fours, then followed with 99 not out off 41 deliveries, featuring 11 sixes and three fours, for Mumbai against Goa at Wankhede Stadium. He also turned out for eventual champions MSC Maratha Royals in the 2026 T20 Mumbai League, scoring 174 runs in five games at an average of 34.80 and a strike rate of 174, with a best of 87.
He impressed in red-ball cricket for Nirlon in the Times Shield A Division as well, finishing as leading run-scorer with 489 in five matches at 122.25, striking at 112.15. His haul included an unbeaten 200, with 36 fours and 28 sixes.
Divyaansh, who made a single Ranji Trophy appearance for Mumbai in January 2023, secured the Orange Cap in this year’s T20 Mumbai League. He compiled 261 runs with three half-centuries at a strike rate of 174, and hit a 17-ball fifty for Arcs Andheri against Eagle Thane Strikers.
The 25-year-old left-hander previously partnered India Test opener Yashasvi Jaiswal at the 2020 ICC Under-19 World Cup in South Africa, scoring 150 in five games at an average of 50 and a strike rate of 64.93, including two fifties.
Both Divyaansh and Ayaz train under coach Jwala Singh, who mentored Jaiswal early in his career. They represent Dadar Union on Mumbai’s club circuit and are yet to debut for Mumbai’s senior side.
Vartak, 21, from Vasai, attended Chennai Super Kings trials ahead of IPL 2026 in April. He turns out for Parsee Gymkhana in Mumbai cricket and captained Mumbai Under-23 during the first phase of the Col CK Nayudu Trophy last season.
Although uncapped at senior level for Mumbai, Vartak has been in the senior probables for the last two seasons. He amassed 363 in six innings at the Men’s State A Trophy 2025, clearing the ropes 26 times, the second-most in the country behind Mukul Choudhary. His scores included 132, 92 not out and 75, making him Mumbai’s top run-scorer in the competition.
In the 2024-25 Col CK Nayudu Trophy, Vartak piled up 770 in nine matches, the highest tally by a Mumbai batter, with notable knocks of 192, 105, 102, 77, 59 and 54. He recently received the Mumbai Cricket Association’s Under-23 Outstanding Performance Award for 2024.
Gore, a leg-spinner who represented Mumbai Under-16 last season, is also among those attending the trials.