The Ranji Trophy 2025/26 will commence on October 15.
A new season demands fresh challenges. These challenges come in the form of various aspects. The Ranji Trophy has been one of the most prestigious domestic tournaments in India. This tournament has had a huge contribution in developing talent in order to play at the highest level. The Ranji Trophy acts as a stepping stone in the careers of players who have gone on to become international stalwarts of the game.
Over the past few months, there has been an increasing trend in the amount of players who are opting to shift base with respect to the teams they represent. Most of the changes have come in search of better opportunities. The Ranji Trophy for 2025 is scheduled to start from October 15, and here’s a list of players who are changing states for the upcoming season.
Speak of homecoming, and here’s a proper example. After spending a while at Vidarbha, Indian Test batter Karun Nair is set to return to his home state for the upcoming Ranji Trophy season. He went to Vidarbha in search of better opportunities after his loss of form. However, he is expected to return to Karnataka soon. Nair has received an NOC from the Vidarbha Cricket Association, in a step to complete the formalities.
The right-handed batter was a part of India’s squad in the recent Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy on English soil. He batted at No.3 in the five-match Test series, and showed a decent amount of promise. But, he threw his wicket away on a couple of occasions and will hope to correct his mistakes in the domestic season.
Cricket has been kind to Jitesh Sharma off late. The wicketkeeper-batter lifted the Indian Premier League (IPL) trophy with the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) in the 18th edition of the tournament. Additionally, Jitesh was also included in India’s squad for the upcoming Asia Cup 2025 which will be played in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Though he will fight for a spot with Sanju Samson, Jitesh is expected to be a strong contender.
Jitesh Sharma’s Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy (SMAT) campaign ended in a huge disappointment this season. Vidarbha managed to lose all four of their group stage games and languished at the bottom. He made his debut for Vidarbha in 2015, but has featured in only 18 matches till date. He did not play a single game in the recent Ranji Trophy, which justifies his move to Baroda.
Left-arm off-spinner Aditya Sarwate played a significant role in Kerala’s campaign, who ended as the runners-up in the previous Ranji Trophy season. To add to that, Sarwate has a rich history of records with his previous team Vidarbha. However, he has made a shocking decision to shift base to Chhattisgarh ahead of the next season.
The bowling all-rounder has been a veteran in the coveted tournament. He has picked 310 wickets at an impressive average of 19.47. To add to that, Sarwate has also scored 2,175 runs at an average of almost 27. Along with his bowling, which is pinpoint accurate, his batting speaks volumes of his defensive game.
Another left-arm spinner in the ranks for Uttar Pradesh, Saurabh Kumar has decided to play for Andhra Pradesh in the upcoming season of the Ranji Trophy. He earned a call-up to the Indian team for their home series against England last year. But unfortunately, he remained uncapped. Saurabh has been a force to reckon with for Uttar Pradesh in the longest format.
He has scalped 326 wickets at an average of 26.45 in First-class cricket. But his major challenge was in the previous Ranji season, in which he was able to pick just 12 wickets. To add to that, Uttar Pradesh managed to win just one of their seven scheduled group stage fixtures. The left-arm spinner will be representing Andhra Pradesh in the upcoming edition of the Ranji Trophy.
This was one of the highlights of this year’s transfers. Prithvi Shaw will go down as one of the most curious cases in the Indian cricketing circuit. The youngster did everything right in his career to a certain point, after which things started falling like a pack of cards. After winning the ICC Men’s U19 Cricket World Cup in 2018, Shaw continued to perform consistently. He even scored a ton on Test debut for India against the West Indies.
Once highly regarded as one of the best talents in the country, Shaw still has a lot to offer. The youngster from Mumbai will be representing Maharashtra in the Ranji Trophy 2025. Shaw has been playing well recently, and if he continues to perform like the way he has started for Maharashtra, he could revive his career back. Disciplinary issues were his undoing, and he was also dropped from Mumbai’s Ranji side.
Imagine making a Ranji Trophy debut at just 14! Swapnil Singh didn’t just imagine, but brought it down to reality. He made his debut for Baroda at a very tender age, before shifting to Uttarakhand. This decision was because Swapnil failed to cement his place in the playing XI for Baroda. In the previous season, he knocked over 18 wickets in five games. To add to that, he played for the Chepauk Super Gillies in the Tamil Nadu Premier League (TNPL).
Swapnil came into the limelight after RCB bought him in the second half of the 2024 edition. As the primary spinner, he performed well under pressure, and was also a part of RCB’s six-match winning streak, which helped them secure a playoffs berth. The franchise retained him using the Right to Match (RTM) card, but he went unutilised this season.
This is simply another case of homecoming. The left-handed batter, who was a part of Uttar Pradesh for the last two seasons, will be returning to his home side for the upcoming season of the Ranji Trophy. Nitish Rana has a vast experience as far as his skills are concerned and has scored heaps of runs at the domestic level.
With him coming back in the scheme of things for Delhi, it will also be a positive sign for the leadership group. It is always better to have experience amongst youth, and Rana will surely bring the experience into play.
All-rounder Hanuma Vihari will represent Tripura in the next edition of the Ranji Trophy. He took to his social media handles to declare that he would be representing the new state in all the three formats of the game. Furthermore, he indicated a strong possibility to be offered a leadership role by the state. Vihari is not new to performing the duties of a leader.
Having played Tests for India, one of the most resilient knocks Vihari played for India would be his partnership with Ravichandran Ashwin at Sydney. This knock came in the Border-Gavasksr Trophy of 2020/21. India were on the verge of losing the match when the duo got together. Vihari batted for more than three hours with a torn hamstring, but made sure India drew the match.
The 32-year-old is an experienced campaigner. The speedster from Karnataka possesses 93 First-class wickets to his name. He has signed a contract with Goa for the upcoming season, and will be sharing his experience with the underdogs. Goa Cricket Association secretary Shambha Desai confirmed the signing of Kaushik.
Moreover, the entire team would be extremely motivated right now. They have earned a promotion to the elite group after clinching last season’s plate group final. With the experience of Kaushik,, Goa will be a strong contender to scalp 20 wickets against any opposition.
Tripura would be overjoyed to see the kind of players who are wanting to represent their state. More than the laurels, their players would be more excited to interact with some of these professionals, who have seen the game from close. Shankar played a crucial role in India’s 2019 World Cup campaign. Moreover, he was one of India’s middle-order batters for a decent period of time.
The all-rounder expressed that he has received the NOC from the Tamil Nadu Cricketer Association (TNCA). However, Shankar has not yet received any form of confirmation from the Tripura camp. To add to that, Shankar is a vital cog in the wheel of any team he plays for. His association with Tripura, along with the likes of Hanuma Vihari will be a huge boost for the state.
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Samarth had switched to Uttarakhand last season. The right-handed batter is all set to shift base once again, as a replacement for Karun Nair. Samarth has been a good prospect for Karnataka in the past as well, with many of his performances coming in important matches for the side. However, this will pose as a good challenge in front of the batter, who will look to make his place in Vidarbha’s XI.
