Ramakrishna Ghosh has been climbing up the ranks in Maharashtra cricket. A batter capable of coming in at No.8 or ready to face the new ball as an opener, Ghosh is good enough to be entrusted with a full quota of medium-pace including in the powerplay and at the death.
After being shunted out of the state side for an entire season after a bit-part role in the 2022-23 season, Ghosh has come back into fold in the domestic circuit and also landed an Indian Premier League (IPL) contract with five-time champions Chennai Super Kings. It needed the presence of important people and a genius team decision for that to happen.
In the 2024 Maharashtra Premier League (MPL), Puneri Bappa led by CSK captain Ruturaj Gaikwad made the decision to promote Ghosh to the role of the opener after he returned scores of 12 and 2 followed by two dismissals for duck while batting at No. 8. Bappa were going through a wretched run in the tournament after having reached the playoffs in the 2023 edition.
In the sixth league game against Raigad Royals, the team management decided to promote the 27-year-old Ghosh to an opening position where he looked like a completely different player. The right-hander blazed his way to 52 off 33 balls as Bappa’s score galloped to 90/3 in just 11 overs which was far cry from their lethargic scoring in the MPL 2024 until then. Ghosh’s innings included three boundaries and four sixes. Besides being very strong on the leg side, he can also drive well on the back foot and through the covers on the front foot.
The promotion didn’t seem like a blip as Ghosh scored quickly in the next match against Chhatrapati Sambhaji Kings with a run-a-ball 35. In the final group match against Ratnagiri Jets he once again wasted little time scoring 17 off 13 balls as Bappa came very close to chasing a target of 179.
No wonder Gaikwad as the captain of CSK for IPL 2025, had played a part in convincing CSK management to snap up the allrounder for a base price of INR 30 lakh in the auction. Those three innings also reignited his domestic fortunes in the format as Ghosh was selected for the 2024 Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy (SMAT) squad after two years.
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However, he wasn’t going to be made an opener like in the state league, but rather batted at No.6 better than the No.8 spot back in 2022 SMAT. In the second group match against Kerala, Ghosh made a crucial unbeaten contribution of 13 off 5 balls which took Maharashtra to a thrilling four-wicket win in the final over. He was given two more games while batting at No.9 which had returns of 11 and 1.
Ghosh has also been given the responsibility to bowl two overs in the powerplay, which hasn’t had many positive results. He has bowled nine overs in four matches and went wicketless while conceding at over 10 an over.
Despite his struggles in the SMAT, Ghosh has been doing well in the Ranji Trophy having scored a vital 47 while batting at No.7 in the season opener against Jammu and Kashmir. It took almost two months, three more matches before he found a spot in Maharashtra’s playing XI. Ghosh was also asked to bat No.3 against Odisha which he made it count by scoring 80 and claiming 3-50 with the ball. He also claimed 1-10 in the second innings along with scoring 39 in the second innings, but it wasn’t enough to prevent an Odisha victory.
In the next game against Baroda which Maharashtra won by a whopping 439 runs, Ghosh claimed four wickets and came close to a maiden First-Class hundred but was out on 99.
In the upcoming IPL 2025, it’s tough to imagine Ghosh making it to the playing XI. However, he will get the opportunity to rub shoulders with the most experienced heads in the game and improve his game. His ability to bat anywhere starting from opening to all the way down at No.9 is a good option for CSK, but the chances of them utilising it look far fetched even with captain Gaikwad’s backing.
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