The 2016-17 season of the Ranji Trophy has been a memorable one, with a lot of youngsters coming into the fray and displaying their potential. Numerous records have been broken over the past few weeks, and the upcoming youngsters have given the national selectors a lot to think about with their performances on the field.
As the 6th Round of India’s most prestigious tournament came to end yesterday, let's take a look at the top 5 performers so far.
Special Mentions: Yuzvendra Chahal and Ishan Kishan
The 26-year-old leg-spinner Chahal who came into the limelight after his successful outing at the 2016 Indian Premier League has been in good touch in the six matches he has played by picking up 28 wickets at an average of 22.07.
Ishan Kishan who was India’s U-19 captain had a poor show with the bat at the U-19 World Cup earlier this year, but has turned his fortunes around by performing well with the bat for Jharkhand at the Ranji Trophy. In 9 innings he has scored 599 runs at an average of 74.87 with three centuries to his name.
#5 Yuvraj Singh
After a poor showing with the bat at the Duleep Trophy, no one would have expected this Indian cricket team legend to turn his fortunes around. But, the fighter he is, Yuvraj Singh proved his critics wrong once again and came up with a few spectacular performances with the bat to lead Punjab to a decent position in the table.
After scoring a magnificent knock of 177 against Madhya Pradesh in the 3rd round, he went on to achieve his career high score of 260 against Baroda in the subsequent round and followed that up with a composed 85 in their previous match against Uttar Pradesh.
In the five games he’s played, he has notched up 672 runs at an average of 84.00 with two fifties and two centuries to his name.
#4 Pankaj Singh
This Indian team discard has been knocking on the door of the selection committee for many years with his strong domestic performances for Rajasthan.
This year was no different as he is currently the highest wicket-taker in the Ranji Trophy with 31 wickets to his name at an average of 20.77 in the six matches he has played. He would have felt extremely hard done after being left off the squad for the five-match Test series against England.
The speedster who made his debut for the Indian Test side against England in 2014 was hardly given a chance to prove himself as he was dropped after just two matches. He played his only One Day International against Sri Lanka at Harare where he had a disastrous outing as he did not pick up any wicket and conceded 45 runs in 7 overs.
#3 Krishnamoorthy Vignesh
Tamil Nadu, who have performed exceptionally well in this year’s edition of the Ranji Trophy have their bowlers to thank for leading them to the 2nd position in the table after six matches. Debutant Krishnamoorthy Vignesh, the medium pace bowler, has been in excellent form so far and has the best average amongst the bowlers in the Ranji Trophy so far.
In the five matches he has played, he has taken 26 wickets and boasts an average of 15.88 with an exceptional economy rate of 2.30 and Strike Rate of 41.3.If he continues his knack of taking wickets at regular intervals, he could end up as the highest wicket-taker of the tournament and lead Tamil Nadu to Ranji Trophy success.
#2 Deepak Hooda
The man from Baroda has been the lone star in a team which has failed to register a single win in the five matches they have played so far in the Ranji Trophy this year.
The youngster has been in sublime touch and has broken numerous records as he hopes to make his debut for the Indian cricket team soon. With the way he’s going, his dream could soon come true.
In 8 innings, he has amassed 690 runs at an average of 115 and a high score of 293. He was denied his opportunity to score a triple century as the rest of his team were dismissed before he could do so. He is currently the 3rd highest run-getter in the tournament.
#1 Rishabh Pant
The Indian U-19 star has been the standout performer in the Ranji Trophy so far. He has been breaking records for fun and has been taking the attack to every bowler he faces. He has scored 799 runs with an average of more than 114 and a phenomenal strike rate of 113.01
In his previous match against Jharkhand, he broke a 28-year-old record by scoring the quickest ever century in the Ranji Trophy, achieving his feat in 48 balls. He also became only the 2nd wicket-keeper batsman in Ranji Trophy history to score a triple century and the 3rd youngest ever to do so.
It might be too early to say it, but this young wicket keeper batsman certainly has a bright future and can be the next big thing in Indian cricket.
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