Rahane, Pujara in Ranji squads; Pandya opts out

The opening round of Ranji Trophy matches will begin from February 17 following a fi ve-day quarantine and the squad size, including support staff, has been capped at 30 as the BCCI aims to stage the 38-team event across nine different bio-bubbles amid the Covid-19 pandemic.

The opening round clash between defending champions Saurashtra and Mumbai in Ahmedabad will be a much anticipated one with Cheteshwar Pujara and Ajinkya Rahane having been named in their respective teams.

India and Baroda allrounder Hardik Pandya has decided to skip the upcoming Ranji Trophy in order to focus on his comeback in white-ball cricket.

Pujara on Tuesday made the Saurashtra squad while Rahane was named in the Mumbai team.