The Hyderabad Cricket Association (HCA) has announced that India pacer Mohammed Siraj will lead their Ranji Trophy team in the upcoming season. The 2026-27 Ranji Trophy season will get underway from October 11, with Hyderabad facing Tripura.
Fellow paceman Chama Milind has been named as the vice-captain.
Hyderabad have been placed in Elite Group B of the Ranji Trophy alongside Saurashtra, Karnataka, Punjab, Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Assam, and Tripura.
Siraj was last seen in action leading South Zone’s pace attack in the Duleep Trophy 2026 under the captaincy of Tilak Varma.
There have been concerns over Siraj’s pace, which dropped down to late 120kphs from his usual mid 140kphs during the Sri Lanka tour.
During the two-match series, he delivered
44 overs and picked up four wickets in them.
“Coming off a two-month break straight into a match, my rhythm wasn’t quite there. I’m purely a rhythm bowler. If I’m not in sync, I simply can’t explode through the crease,” Siraj said after the conclusion of the Duleep Trophy final in Chennai.
“That was the struggle in Sri Lanka – my run-up felt disjointed. Some strides were too short, others were too long, and that broke my flow and cost me pace,” he added.
Siraj though showed encouraging signs towards the end of the Duleep Trophy final and feels that the competition has put him in good stead for the challenges ahead.
“Out here, everything clicked into place, and the pace followed naturally. Yes, it was very tough. We came straight from Sri Lanka, where we spent three and a half days fielding in the second Test (at Colombo), and within a week, we were out here playing in Chennai’s sweltering heat,” he said.
“But for me, it comes down to passion. When you’re representing your country, you can’t make excuses. You have to give every ounce of effort for your team and nation,” he added.
