Rajat Patidar set to lead Madhya Pradesh in Ranji Trophy
What's the story
Rajat Patidar has been named the new captain of Madhya Pradesh for the 2025/26 Ranji Trophy season. The 32-year-old cricketer takes over from Shubham Sharma in this leadership role. Although Patidar wasn't interested in leading in red-ball cricket, he has now accepted the responsibility. The Indian batter has also captained MP in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy (SMAT) and the Vijay Hazare Trophy (VHT).
Captaincy record
Patidar's leadership experience
Patidar's journey as a captain in domestic cricket has been noteworthy. His experience and strategic acumen are expected to be vital for the team's performance in the upcoming Ranji Trophy season. The team also includes Yash Dubey, Harsh Gawli, Himanshu Mantri, and Harpreet Singh, among others. Notably, Venkatesh Iyer and Kuldeep Sen are also part of this line-up. However, Avesh Khan misses out due to injury concerns.
Information
MP squad for Ranji Trophy
MP squad: Rajat Patidar (c), Yash Dubey, Harsh Gawli, Shubham Sharma, Himanshu Mantri, Harpreet Singh, Venkatesh Iyer, Sagar Solanki, Kumar Kartikey, Saransh Jain, Adheer Pratap, Aryan Pandey, Arshad Khan, Anubhav Agarwal, and Kuldeep Sen.
Form
Patidar led CZ to Duleep Trophy title
Patidar recently led Central Zone to the Duleep Trophy title. He scored a first-innings ton as his side beat South Zone in the final. Patidar scored 77 in the semi-final against West Zone as well as 125 and 66 against North East Zone in the quarter-final. Overall, he owns 5,120 runs from 71 First-Class matches at an average of 44.52. His tally includes 15 tons and 26 half-centuries. Patidar has also played three Tests for India.