FEATURES
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Rohan Kunnummal
(Innings 6 | Runs 311 | Average 62.2 | Strike Rate 123.9 | 50s/100s 2/1)
The dashing opener from Kerala had a superb tournament but saved his best for the all-important finale. The 25-year-old smoked 107 off 75 deliveries against East Zone and got South Zone off to an unbelievable start, adding 181 runs for the opening wicket with Agarwal.
There were two more fifties in the league stage, but what impressed everyone the most was his strike rate. Kunnummal had the second-best strike rate in the tournament amongst batters who scored at least 100 runs. An average of 57.11 and a strike rate of 107.53 in List A, Kunnummal is the perfect modern-day opener, reminiscent of Virender Sehwag.
Yash Dubey
(Innings 5 | Runs 293 | Average 58.6 | Strike Rate 75.3 | 50s/100s 3/0)
If Kunnummal is your boundary-hitter, Dubey is the one who can hold the innings at No. 3. The 24-year-old from Madhya Pradesh operated at a strike rate of 75.3 but scored runs in every single game. In five innings, Dubey managed scores of 17, 78, 49, 72 and 77 and was the leading run-scorer for Central Zone.
Overall as well, Dubey averages 54.45 in this format and is one of those who will give you runs on a consistent basis.
Sai Sudharsan
(Innings 3 | Runs 204 | Average 102 | Strike Rate 91.5 | 50s/100s 1/1)
The left-handed batter needs no introduction, especially after what he did in the last edition of the Indian Premier League. Sudharsan wasn’t picked originally in the squad but an injury to Devdutt Padikkal made things easier for South Zone, integrating the left-hander into the XI.
In his first game against East Zone, the 21-year-old crafted 53 off 67. He then followed it up with a 136-ball 132* against Central Zone and once again reminded everyone of how special he is. At this rate, it won’t be too long before Sudharsan breaks into the Indian set-up, considering his ability across formats.
WICKETKEEPERS
Harvik Desai
(Innings 5 | Runs 301 | Average 60.2 | Strike Rate 88.5 | 50s/100s 4/0)
The wicketkeeper-batter from Saurashtra has been producing consistent numbers in domestic cricket for the last couple of years. Since 2022, the 23-year-old averages 49.4 and has nine 50-plus scores in 15 List A innings.
In the 2023 Deodhar Trophy, Desai got scores of 85, 11, 57, 56 and 92 and ended the competition as the fourth-highest run-getter. His best knock came against East Zone in a must-win encounter, where he got 92 runs, with not a single one of his teammates being able to cross the 20-run mark, nearly getting a century for himself.
Kumar Kushagra
(Innings 5 | Runs 227 | Average 56.75 | Strike Rate 109.1 | 50s/100s 3/0)
An emerging wicketkeeper-batter from Jharkhand, we have heard that a couple of times in the past. No, we are not comparing him with the likes of MS Dhoni and Ishan Kishan, but there’s something about Kushagra that tells you he is the one to watch out for.
The 18-year-old averages 53.60 in List A and has already played some match-defining knocks. Just look at this tournament, his knocks of 98 (v North), 53 (v West) and 68 (v South) came after East Zone were reduced to 57/5, 157/5 and 115/5 respectively. It was mostly because of him and Riyan Parag, East Zone made it through to the final.
Kushagra is making all the right noise at the moment and it won’t be too long before the selectors start paying attention too.
ALL-ROUNDERS
Riyan Parag
(Runs 354 | Average 88.5 | Strike Rate 136.7 | 50s/100s 1/2 | Wickets 11 | Average 19.1)
Just look at those aforementioned numbers, Parag had a dream tournament. Player of the tournament. Leading run-scorer. Best strike rate. Most sixes. Joint third-highest wicket-taker. The 21-year-old completely bossed the 2023 Deodhar Trophy and forced everyone to sit up and take notice. His knocks of 131, 102*, and 95 in the final came under immense pressure.
On top of that, he also claimed two four-wicket hauls. Since 2022, Parag has been averaging 66.57 and has five centuries and two fifties in 16 List A innings. A player who can bat in the top-six and can give you enough overs, that’s enough to grab anyone’s attention in Indian cricket. It’s a rare breed these days in India.
Also read: How Riyan Parag deals with hatred, trolls and criticism
Atit Sheth
(Runs 111 | Average 55.5 | Strike Rate 89.5 | 50s/100s 1/0 | Wickets 4 | Average 45.3)
The 27-year-old wasn’t as impressive as some of the others on the list but the fast-bowling all-rounder played his role to perfection. Batting at No. 7, Sheth almost got West Zone over the line against South Zone. He scored 40 off 39 but his team fell short by 12 runs in a 207-run target, after being reduced to 96/5.
Sheth failed to do it against South Zone but didn’t disappoint against Central Zone. Chasing 244, West were 138/6, but that’s when Sheth stepped up and got 53* to help his team win the game by one wicket. He didn’t take enough wickets but bowled 38 overs with an economy of 4.8.
BOWLERS
Vidwath Kaverappa
(Innings 5 | Wickets 13 | Average 14.5 | Economy 4.7 | Strike Rate 18.5)
From being the second-highest wicket-taker in the Duldeep Trophy to finishing the Deodhar Trophy as the leading wicket-taker, Kaverappa seems to be growing from strength to strength. The right-arm seamer from Karnataka started the tournament with figures of 5/17 against North Zone and made an impact in every game thereafter.
Kaverappa debuted for Karnataka last year but has already become a household name in the domestic circuit. He only operates in the 130s and is still working on his pace, but an average of 18.69 in first-class, 13.76 in List A and 10.72 in T20s should tell you how good he is.
Mayank Yadav
(Innings 5 | Wickets 12 | Average 17.6 | Economy 5.2 | Strike Rate 20.3)
Having picked up 28 wickets in 12 innings at an average of 20, the 21-year-old seamer from Delhi has insane numbers in List A cricket. Mayank made his debut for Delhi in December 2021 and has been a wicket machine for his state side, and now for North Zone as well. He is yet to go wicketless in this format.
Thrice in the Deodhar Trophy, the right-armer picked up three or more wickets. He was picked up by Lucknow Super Giants at the IPL 2023 auction, and we are probably going to hear a lot about him in the future.
Shams Mulani, Shahbaz Ahmed and R Sai Kishore
There are too many left-arm spinner in Indian cricket at the moment and we got to witness some of them in this tournament. Ravindra Jadeja and Axar Patel are India’s top-two left-arm spin-bowling allrounders, but Mulani, Shahbaz and Sai Kishore are also big names in domestic cricket.
The three of them didn’t do much with the bat but were impressive with the ball. While Mulani and Shahbaz claimed 12 wickets, Sai Kishore took 11. All three of them operated at an economy of around 4. Shahbaz is even part of the Indian squad for the Ireland T20Is and would look to get out of this “mud”.
