Ranji Trophy, India's premier first-class cricket tournament, once again showcased the nation's top talents from various states and regions. The tournament witnessed exhilarating matches and unforgettable moments on the field. The summit clash between Mumbai and Vidarbha was much closer than expected although the former was crowned champions for the 42nd time. Throughout the series, a bunch of players displayed their great potential, thereby demanding a chance to become part of the Indian Test set-up. Here are a few of them:
Pratham Singh (31)
Pratham Singh bats with his left hand and bowls right-arm off-spin. The opener started playing List A cricket for Railways in February 2017, followed by his first-class debut in November 2017 and his Twenty20 debut in February 2019. In a match against Tripura, he scored an impressive 169 runs in the second innings, earning him the title of Man of the Match.
Ashutosh Rambabu Sharma (25)
Ashutosh Sharma is a right-handed batter who plays for Railways and Madhya Pradesh. He started playing Twenty20 cricket for Madhya Pradesh in January 2018 and made his List A debut in October 2019 during the Vijay Hazare Trophy. In first-class cricket, he has scored 268 runs in 7 innings, including a century. In a match against Gujarat, he scored 123 runs with 12 boundaries and 8 sixes off just 84 balls, earning him the title of Man of the Match.
Siddarth Ajaybhai Desai (23)
Siddarth Desai is a left-handed batter who also bowls slow left-arm orthodox. The Gujarat star is known as one of the top bowlers currently playing in the Ranji Trophy. Siddarth made his first-class debut in October 2017, where he took five wickets in one innings and was named Man of the Match. In the 2018 ACC Under-19 Asia Cup, he was the highest wicket-taker with 18 scalps from five matches. He's taken around 143 wickets in 57 innings, conceding 3631 runs in about 6948 balls, which is a good average. In recent matches, he's taken 28 wickets in 10 innings. In a match against Karnataka, he took 9 wickets and was awarded Man of the Match, showing his promising talent.
Harsh Surendra Dubey (21)
All-rounder Harsh Dubey is a left-handed batter and a slow left-arm orthodox bowler. He represents Vidarbha and the Vidarbha under-19 team. He started playing List A cricket in February 2020 and made his Twenty20 debut in November 2021. In first-class matches, he has taken 20 wickets in 11 innings. Ahead of the the Ranji Trophy final, his tally stood at 15, and he took an additional 7 wickets, bringing his total to 23 wickets.
Sriram Ajith Ram (25)
Sriram is a left-handed batter and a slow left-arm orthodox bowler who prefers bowling over batting. He plays for IDream Tiruppur Tamizhans, Lyca Kovai Kings, and Tamil Nadu. The just-concluded Ranji season saw him picking 30 wickets. He's being considered as Tamil Nadu's next R Ashwin because of his impressive performances. Against Karnataka, he managed 4/75 and 5/61 runs in the first and second innings respectively. Sriram is a confident bowler who trusts his instincts and boosts his captain's confidence.
Akshay Ramachandran Chandran (30)
Akshay Chandran is a cricket player from Kerala who bats and bowls with his left hand. He made his List A debut in September 2018 and his Twenty20 debut in November 2019. In first-class matches, he has scored over 1300 runs from 45 innings. In a match against Andhra, he scored 184 runs accompanied by 20 boundaries and took a wicket.
Himanshu Sandeep Kumar Mantri (30)
Madhya Pradesh's Himanshu Kumar is a left-handed batter who also is a wicketkeeper. He made his first-class debut in December 2019 and has scored 1845 runs from 48 innings. In a match against Vidarbha, he scored 126 runs and took three wickets. He performed consistently well in the just-concluded Ranji season.
Shashwat Gopal Rawat (22)
Baroda's Shashwat Rawat is a left-handed batter and a right-arm medium-pace bowler. He started playing Twenty20 cricket in November 2021 and made his List A debut in December 2021. Before his Twenty20 debut, he was part of India's squad for the 2020 Under-19 Cricket World Cup. In first-class cricket, he has scored 1195 runs in 24 innings, including 11 centuries. In the current Ranji season, he has scored 440 runs in 7 innings, with a notable 124-run innings against Mumbai. He's known for delivering crucial runs when his team needs them.
Adithya Shailesh Thakare (25)
Adithya Thakare mainly focuses on bowling. He played for India's Under-19 team and Vidarbha. He started playing first-class cricket for Vidarbha in December 2017. During the 2018 Under-19 Cricket World Cup, he joined India's team as a replacement for Ishan Porel, who got injured. In November 2019, he filled in for the unwell Kamlesh Nagarkoti in India's squad for the 2019 ACC Emerging Teams Asia Cup. Thakare is seen as a promising talent of his generation. In one of the Ranji Trophy seasons, he took about 35 wickets.
Tanush Karunakar Kotian (25)
Tanush Kotian is a cricketer who bats and bowls with his right hand. He's mainly known for his bowling skills. He plays for India's Under-19 team and the Mumbai team. He started playing first-class cricket for Mumbai in December 2018. His List A debut was in March 2021, and he played his first Twenty20 match in November 2021, both for Mumbai. In a Ranji Trophy (2024 season) match between Mumbai and Baroda (23 February), he contributed significantly by scoring about 120 runs and taking 2 wickets for his team. He is a player who maintains his consistency throughout all the matches, a player with great talent and balance.
Ravisrnivasan Sai Kishore (27)
Left-handed Sai Kishore mainly focuses on his slow left-arm orthodox bowling. The Tamil Nadu star has played the IPL for Chennai Super Kings and Gujarat Titans. He started playing List A cricket in March 2017, first-class cricket in October 2017, and Twenty20 cricket in January 2018, all for Tamil Nadu. Chennai Super Kings bought him in the 2020 IPL auction for ₹20 lakh. He was named as a standby player for India's T20I squad in January 2022 and was part of the Indian squad for the 2022 Asian Games. In the current Ranji series, he has taken around 53 wickets, the highest in the series, with an average of 18.52.
