After Virender Sehwag, now Mithun Manhas decides to leave Delhi Ranji team

New Delhi: Close on the heels of Virender Sehwag's decision to leave Delhi for Haryana, another domestic heavyweight Mithun Manhas has also decided to leave Delhi after 17 seasons with his home state.

It was learnt that Manhas, who will soon turn 36, has decided to apply for NOC from Delhi, which is required to apply for inter-state transfer as he will be playing for another state as a professional.

"Yes, I have decided to leave Delhi and play for another state this season. I have already applied to Delhi & Districts Cricket Association (DDCA) for NOC. There are a few offers in the pipeline but at this point of time, I will not be able to reveal where I am going. May be in another couple of day’s time, I will be able to tell you," Manhas told PTI when asked about his departure from Delhi.

Manhas has been a Delhi giant for close to a decade and a half as he shouldered the burden of the state team's batting in the absence of Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir and Virat Kohli, who have been away on national duty during various phases.

The stylish right-hander scored 9071 runs in 147 first-class matches at an average of 45.81 with 25 centuries. He was also the captain of the North Zone team that won Duleep Trophy in the 2006-07 season. He has also played for India A, India Green in the NKP Salve Challenger Series.

He also scored close to 1000 runs (921 runs) in the 2007-08 season when Delhi won the Ranji Trophy under Gautam Gambhir.

DDCA top official Chetan Chauhan said that they have no objection to either of Sehwag and Manhas leaving Delhi and plying their trade for some other state. "We have received application for NOC from Virender Sehwag and Mithun Manhas. The DDCA will certainly grant them NOC as we have no problems if they want to play for another state," Chauhan said.

The DDCA wants to infuse fresh blood in their line-up with a few players like right-hander Milind Kumar, left-hander Mohit Sharma not getting enough chances in the past few years.

It is still not clear as to who among current skipper Gautam Gambhir or former captain Rajat Bhatia will be leading the team in the upcoming domestic season. If the seniors decline to take the offer, it can be young India A limited overs captain Unmukt Chand, who will be entrusted with the duty of leading the side.

Sehwag finally decided to make a shift from Delhi to Haryana for the forthcoming domestic cricket season. After having represented Delhi for 18 seasons since 1997-98, Sehwag, who took the NOC from Delhi a couple of days back, will now be seen playing for the Haryana Cricket Association and seemed pretty excited about his move, informed HCA Secretary Anirudh Chaudhry.

"I am really looking forward to playing for Haryana this domestic season. It is an exciting setup with a lot of youngsters in the side," the 36-year-old said.

"It will be nice to share the dressing room with a side that is bubbling with youth. I will be looking to share my experiences with them and hopefully shape some of their careers in the process. I also hope to score well for Haryana this domestic season. I would like to thank the DDCA for their support to me over the years and would particularly like to thank Mr Arun Jaitley, who in his erstwhile role as the President of DDCA guided and supported all the players and particularly me," added the Najafgarh-born player.

HCA President Arvind Chowdhry said, "We are honoured that Viru has decided to represent our state association in domestic cricket. His contribution both on the field and in the dressing room has been superb. We are delighted and looking forward to a successful season ahead."

Anirudh is also eager to have someone like Sehwag in the Haryana side. "To have someone like Mr Virender Sehwag will add a lot of experience to our young side. This is a team that is keen to perform and make a statement in the domestic season and Viru is just the right man to guide them. The team is bound to benefit from Viru's leadership, experience and batting abilities. We look forward to having him in our side and start training with the team soon."

The India veteran has played 104 Tests for the nation, registering 8586 runs and 23 hundreds under his belt.