The Ranji Trophy 2025-26 will kickstart on October 15.
The first round of the Ranji Trophy 2025 will kickstart on October 15 with three exciting Plate group matches and 16 enthralling Elite group fixtures. A total of 38 teams will participate in the 91st edition of India’s ancient red-ball league, across 138 matches, which will continue till February 2026.
Let’s look at the Indian Test players who will be seen to feature for their respective sides in the prestigious multi-day tournament.
All-rounder Shardul Thakur has recently been appointed as the skipper of Mumbai for the Ranji Trophy 2025, following the sudden stepdown of the former captain Ajinkya Rahane. Notably, Mumbai is the most successful team in Ranji Trophy history with a record 42 titles, and their latest championship-winning campaign also came under Rahane in the 2023-24 season.
Previously, Shardul has had an average outing in India’s latest five-Test tour of England. The player managed to scalp only two wickets in as many matches and scored just 46 runs. He also went wicketless in the Duleep Trophy 2025 quarterfinals but put up a crucial 64-run knock while leading the West Zone.
However, the 33-year-old would look to turn around these sub-par stats to produce a commendable performance in his maiden captaincy season for Mumbai in the tournament. Shardul has bagged 302 wickets, including 15 fifers and a 10-wicket haul and also scored 2,688 runs in 97 First-Class matches.
The veteran Indian pacer, Mohammed Shami, was snubbed for consecutive Test series against England and the West Indies due to a poor run of form. Since his comeback from the ankle injury that he sustained in the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2023, Shami has struggled to get back to his best.
Following an average Champions Trophy 2025 outing, the bowler also had a forgettable Indian Premier League (IPL) season for his new franchise, the Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH). The 35-year-old also managed just one scalp on his return to the format in the Duleep Trophy 2025 and conceded 136 runs at an expensive economy rate of 4.00.
But Shami would want to regain his fierce form in a bid to earn a recall to the Indian Test team. Moreover, he holds a stunning First-Class record to his name, consisting of 340 wickets in 90 matches, laced with 12 fifers and two 10-wicket hauls. The player is set to represent West Bengal in the upcoming red-ball tournament.
Another Team India seamer, Akash Deep, who made the headlines after his heroics in the second England vs India Test at the Edgbaston Stadium, will also feature for the West Bengal side in the Ranji Trophy 2025. Apart from his match-winning 10-wicket haul in Birmingham, the 28-year-old had also scalped three more wickets during the overseas tour.
Akash Deep has also displayed a continued consistency by scalping three key wickets for the Rest of India (ROI) against Vidarbha in the recently concluded Irani Cup 2025.
After a long eight-year wait to don the Indian whites once again, Karnataka batter Karun Nair finally received his second Test call-up for India’s five-match series against England. But he could not claim the opportunity by putting up an impressive performance in his maiden overseas tour.
He had started off with an astonishing double-hundred against the England Lions. But coming in at No.3 in the five-Test series, Karun managed to score only 205 runs in four matches, including a half-century, at an average of 25.62. Following the below-par performance, he was not included in India’s home Test squad for the latest two-match series against the West Indies.
However, the three-time Ranji-winner (two times with Karnataka and the latest season with Vidarbha), Karun, possesses magnificent First-Class figures and was also the fourth-highest run-scorer of the 2024-25 season with 863 runs.
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Since earning his maiden Test call-up in December 2022, Abhimanyu Easaran has been part of the Team India squad for several red-ball tours. But unfortunately, he is yet to make his debut for the national side. Notably, after failing to get a chance in the England vs India Tests, the West Bengal captain was ambiguously dropped for the latest series against the Caribbeans.
However, he is also continuing a decent run in the format and has put up successive 40-plus scores in the Irani Cup and the recent multi-day series against Australia A, following the 80-run knock while facing the England Lions. Moreover, the batter has notched up 7,954 runs so far in 105 First-Class fixtures, which includes 27 tons and 32 fifty-plus scores, at an average of 48.50.
The Tamil Nadu wicketkeeper-batter, Narayan Jagadeesan, received his first Test call-up after a brilliant run in the recent red-ball matches. The 29-year-old scored 197 and an unbeaten 52 for the South Zone in the Duleep Trophy quarter-finals.
The gloveman followed it up with a 64-run knock and successive 30s in the subsequent home series against the Australia A. Jagadeesan has already notched up 3,760 runs in 55 First-Class games, which features 11 centuries and 16 fifty-plus scores, averaging an impressive 50.13.
Ishan Kishan was the first backup India sought on the England tour after Rishabh Pant went down with an injury. Unfortunately, Kishan, who was playing for Nottinghamshire at the time, was also injured and India picked Narayan Jagadeesan. Kishan has since been out of the squad, with his last Test match being more than two years ago in the West Indies.
If Kishan harbours hopes of a red-ball return, this Ranji season could prove to be crucial. He has been named as the Jharkhand captain for the season and game-time will be important for him to prove his red-ball credentials. With Pant’s fitness a concern, Kishan has a strong chance to beat Jagadeesan to the back-up wicketkeeper slot alongside Dhruv Jurel if he has a good Ranji season.
Rishabh Pant’s possible appearance in the early rounds of the Ranji Trophy 2025-26 is the biggest storyline of the domestic season. Out of competitive cricket since fracturing his toe during India’s tour of England, Pant has been undergoing rehabilitation at the BCCI Centre of Excellence. While he is not part of Delhi’s squad for the opening fixture against Hyderabad, plans are already in place for a return either in the second round against Himachal Pradesh or the third against Puducherry.
His comeback would not just boost Delhi but also serve as important match practice ahead of the crucial home Test series against South Africa starting November 14. At a time when India’s Test calendar is sparse and opportunities for red-ball preparation are limited, Pant’s return carries added significance. The Ranji Trophy allows him to test his fitness, movement, and wicketkeeping workload in multi-day conditions—key factors ahead of international selection. His presence will also draw attention to Delhi’s campaign, providing younger teammates a rare chance to share the field with one of India’s most impactful modern cricketers.
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