Mumbai may get Çhacha-bhatija duo in Ranji Trophy

Zee Media Bureau

Mumbai: Taking a cue from the national selectors, it seems the new panel of Mumbai selectors are giving youngsters a chance to prove their mettle. The list of Mumbai probables for upcoming Ranji Trophy includes young Arman Jaffer who interestingly might get an opportunity to play with his uncle Wasim Jaffer in the same team. This Çhacha-bhatija duo was selected by the committee chaired by former opener Sudhir Naik. Fourteen year old Arman might get the golden opportunity to be on the same side as Sachin Tendulkar. He will also get an opportunity to face Zaheer Khan and Dhaval Kulkarni at the nets. Wasim Jaffer, considered to be one of the finest batsmen in domestic cricket, expressed his happiness over the inclusion of his nephew in the team. “This is a very good step by the selectors. They have shown faith in youngsters”, Jaffer told a leading newspaper. Arman has made a name for himself in past few years with his sensational batting performances. He scored a record 498 runs for Rizvi Springfield in the Giles Shield final in 2010, and rustled up 473 this February in the Harris Shield final. This season, Arman catapulted Mumbai U-16 team to the Vijay Merchant title by scoring 1046 runs with four hundreds and eight fifties — in six games. This was the first time a batsman had scored more than 1,000 runs in that tournament. Promoting the young brigade, Arman`s 15-year-old schoolmate Sarfaraz Khan, too has made it to the probables list. "From now, we want to blood youngsters right away so that they are eligible to play for India soon. We want to increase Mumbai`s representation in the Indian team," said an MCA official. Arman`s father-cum-coach Kalim Jaffer is excited about the prospect of his seeing his brother and son in the same team. "I want to see Arman bat in the middle with his uncle Wasim. I want Arman to gain from Wasim`s experience of building an innings and batting when the team is under pressure," said Kalim.