A number of top Indian stars returned to domestic cricket after a horrific Test season.
A number of top Indian stars returned to domestic cricket after a horrific Test season which saw embarrassing losses against New Zealand and Australia.
Barring Virat Kohli and KL Rahul, who are currently nursing minor injuries, Indian stalwarts like Rohit Sharma, Ravindra Jadeja, Rishabh Pant amongst others took part in the ongoing round of second-phase Ranji Trophy 2024-25 matches. The
In this article, we take a look at how these India international stars fared in the domestic red-ball tournament.
Returning for Mumbai in nearly a decade, Rohit Sharma was in need of a solid knock to get past his jitters, especially after his dismal show Down Under where he managed just 31 runs from five innings at a terrible average of 6.20.
However, his poor string of scores continued as the Indian skipper managed only three runs off 19 deliveries and was troubled by the Jammu & Kashmir (J&K) pace duo of Auqib Nabi and Umar Nazir Mir during his entire stay at the crease. He was eventually dismissed by Mir as Rohit handed a leading edge to the mid-off fielder.
The veteran Indian all-rounder, like always, made handy contributions in every department. He first registered a record-fifer, becoming only the fourth bowler from Saurashtra to take over 200 wickets in the tournament. The 36-year-old then slammed a fiery 38 off 36 to put opposition Delhi on the backfoot after bundling them out initially for 188 with his heroics with the ball.
In the process, Jadeja also joined an elite list which includes players who have reached the remarkable landmark double of 3,000 runs and 200 wickets.
The dynamic Indian top-order batter turned up for Punjab for their match against Karnataka in the Ranji Trophy 2024-25, in Bengaluru. Gill, who has had a below par outing in Australia with an average of 18.60 could not win over his demons this time too.
Gill was caught behind off Abhilash Shetty’s delivery, just a couple of balls after cover-driving him for a boundary. Punjab’s fortunes didn’t improve and folded for 55 runs in its first innings.
The opening batting sensation enjoyed a stellar campaign in 2024 and was the highest run-scorer for Indian across formats. He topped the charts for India in BGT as well.
In domestic cricket too, he has stellar records but unfortunately failed to emulate that during Mumbai’s match against J&K. He was quick to get off the blocks, cutting through backward point for a boundary but the southpaw was given the marching orders when he was trapped lbw against an in-seaming delivery.
In Rajkot, Rishabh Pant represented Delhi in a First-Class match for the first time since the 2017-2018 season. The dynamic left-hander was dismissed for just 1 run off 10 deliveries by experienced Saurashtra spinner Dharmendrasinh Jadeja, which only highlighted India’s ongoing batting struggles in international cricket.
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