Gautam Gambhir, Ishant Sharma to miss Delhi's first two games in the Vijay Hazare Trophy

With the IPL auction done and dusted, all the focus now shifts to the upcoming Vijay Hazare Trophy. However, in a recent development, it has been revealed that Delhi will be without the services of two key players. Veteran left-handed opener Gautam Gambhir and pacer Ishant Sharma will remain unavailable for the initial league matches. The duo would be available only after the first two games of the leg to be held in Himachal Pradesh from February 5.

Ishant, who was named the captain of the side, requested time to recover after having flown back from South Africa only on Tuesday after participating in the Test series. In his absence, Pradeep Sangwan, who skippered the side that won the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy (Zonal T20 league) recently, will lead the squad for the first two matches against Uttar Pradesh and Tripura.

Gambhir, on the other hand, had to pull out of the league phase after incurring an ankle injury. Gambhir will be forced to the sidelines as he had been advised a ten-day rest.

Off-spinner Shivam Sharma will be the likely replacement for Ishant and Milind Kumar comes in place of Gambhir.

Delhi players asked to undergo Yo-Yo Test; Sangwan to lead

Meanwhile, Navdeep Saini, Kulwant Khejroliya and Pawan Negi, all members of the Delhi team for the Vijay Hazare tournament, have been asked to undergo the yo-yo test by their Indian Premier League (IPL) franchise Royal Challengers Bangalore. The tests would be conducted at the Ferozeshah Kotla where Delhi is scheduled to have a two-day training session before leaving for Himachal Pradesh.

Delhi takes on Uttar Pradesh in their opening Group B match on February 5. It will be followed by Tripura on 7 February, Maharashtra on 9 February, Bengal on 11 February, Kerala on 13 February and Himachal Pradesh on 15 February.

Delhi squad:

Pradeep Sangwan (C), Milind Kumar, Rishabh Pant, Hiten Dalal, Dhruv Shorey, Nitish Rana, Unmukt Chand, Navdeep Saini, Kulwant Khejroliya, Suboth Bhati, Pawan Negi, Shivam Sharma Manan Sharma, Kshitiz Sharma, Lalit Yadav