Indian cricketer Shikhar Dhawan will lead Delhi team in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2020-21.

Indian domestic T20 tournament begins from Jan 10 and Delhi have named a 42-member squad for the tournament.

Ishant Sharma was forced to miss the Australia tour due to a side strain he suffered during the Indian Premier League (IPL) this year.

According to reports, the Indian fast bowler will only be available for some of the SMAT matches. The 32-year-old had recently undergone rehab at the National Cricket Academy in Bengaluru.

Ishant Sharma and Shikhar Dhawan were both parts of Delhi Capitals during the IPL 2020. While Ishant’s tournament came to a premature end due to an inconvenient injury. Dhawan went on to become one of the successes of the tournament.

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He struck two centuries in the IPL 2020 and was DC’s highest run-getter in the campaign where they finished runners-up for the first time.

Shikhar Dhawan will be the key player in the series. India’s Under-19 World Cup-winning captain Unmukt Chand, Nitish Rana, Pawan Suyal, and Manan Sharma are among other players who have been picked to play for Delhi in the SMAT this season.

Delhi team have one SMAT title under their belt. Having won the tournament final against Rajasthan at the Eden Gardens in the 2017-18 season.

It was veteran pacer Pradeep Sangwan who led them to the title. Bagging the Player of the Match award in the final.

(With input from SportsKeeds)