Will Rohit Sharma, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Sarfaraz Khan play Ranji Trophy final after BCCI's domestic cricket diktat?

Given BCCI's brand-new rule, will the likes of Rohit, Jaiswal and Sarfaraz make themselves available for selection for the Ranji Trophy final for Mumbai?

The statement from the BCCI press release that summed up the reason behind Shreyas Iyer and Ishan Kishan not being considered for the annual retainers for the 2023-24 season was: "all athletes give precedence to participating in domestic cricket during periods when they are not representing the national team". Rahul Dravid stressed on it as well on Saturday after India beat England in the fifth Test in Dharamsala, while captain Rohit Sharma spoke on the topic earlier this month at a press conference. But will the rule apply to the Indian skipper himself, along with Sarfaraz Khan and Yashasvi Jaiswal, with Mumbai playing the Ranji Trophy final on Sunday?

India's captain Rohit Sharma (L) and Yashasvi Jaiswal run between the wickets during the first day of the fifth Test cricket match between India and England at the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association Stadium in Dharamsala on March 7 (AFP)

Iyer and Ishan both turned a blind eye to BCCI's repeated orders to play in the ongoing Ranji Trophy season over the last two months. Their act forced the board secretary Jay Shah to send a warning letter to all centrally-contracted players to not prioritise IPL over domestic cricket, with severe consequences awaiting. But with the two cricketers deciding to skip Ranji Trophy matches even then, the BCCI took an unprecedented step.

"Everyone who's playing domestic cricket is in the mix," Dravid said after India's 4-1 series win over England on Saturday. "...it's just a question of hopefully them getting back and fit, playing cricket, and forcing the selectors to pick them again."

Hence, given BCCI's brand-new rule, and with that being major criteria for selection into the Indian team, will the likes of Rohit, Jaiswal and Sarfaraz make themselves available for selection for the Mumbai team for the Ranji Trophy final against Vidarbha at the Wankhede Stadium?

While the board could likely arrange a charter flight for the trio straight from Dharamsala to Mumbai, it is unlikely that Rohit and Jaiswal would both play the match on Sunday. They two featured in all five matches against England and hence would be rested for the final with the 2024 IPL season ahead. However, Sarfaraz, who only played three Tests against England, given that he made his debut in the third match in Rajkot, could feature in the final. He earlier played just one match for Mumbai this season, against Bihar in January, owing to his commitments for India A.

If Rohit does decide to feature in the match on Sunday, it will be his first Ranji Trophy appearance since the 2016/17 season.

Shreyas Iyer will however be part of the final for Mumbai, having re-joined the side last week for the Ranji Trophy semifinal against Tamil Nadu after reportedly nursing back from a back injury.