5 big IPL stars who flopped in Vijay Hazare Trophy 2025–26 quarterfinals, ft. Rinku Singh

The quarterfinals of the 2025–26 Vijay Hazare Trophy ended on Tuesday, January 13. Punjab, Karnataka, Vidarbha, and Saurashtra qualified for the semifinals. Madhya Pradesh, Mumbai, Delhi, and Uttar Pradesh were knocked out of the tournament.

Several international players were unavailable due to the ongoing India–New Zealand ODI series. Players like Shreyas Iyer and Rishabh Pant did not feature, which affected the performance of Mumbai and Delhi. Meanwhile, batters such as Prabhsimran Singh, Anmolpreet Singh, Shams Mulani, and Sameer Rizvi impressed with strong performances.

In this article, we look at five big IPL players who failed to perform in the Vijay Hazare Trophy 2025–26 quarterfinals.

Also read -Watch: KKR all-rounder secures Punjab's place in VHT 2025-26 semi-finals

1. Venkatesh Iyer

Madhya Pradesh captain and Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) all-rounder Venkatesh Iyer had a poor outing with the bat. He was dismissed for a two-ball duck, lbw to Sanvir Singh, as Punjab defeated Madhya Pradesh by 183 runs. In the 2025–26 Vijay Hazare Trophy, he scored 176 runs in eight innings at a strike rate of 25.14, including one half-century. With the ball, he took seven wickets in six innings at an economy rate of 5.54. RCB bought him for INR 7 crore ahead of the IPL 2026 season.

2. Angkrish Raghuvanshi

Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) batter Angkrish Raghuvanshi failed to make an impact against Karnataka. He scored 27 runs off 50 balls at a low strike rate of 54. The 21-year-old earlier impressed with scores of 92 and 68 not out against Maharashtra and Chhattisgarh. However, his other scores were 38, 11, 11, 23, and 27. KKR retained him for INR 3 crore for IPL 2026. With no Iyer in the squad, Raghuvanshi will have an important role next season.

3. Nitish Rana

Delhi Capitals (DC) batter Nitish Rana was out for a golden duck against Vidarbha in the quarterfinal. Delhi lost the match by 76 runs and failed to reach the semifinals. Rana finished the tournament with 255 runs in eight innings at an average of 42.50, including two half-centuries. He was traded to DC ahead of the IPL 2026 auction for INR 4.2 crore, with Donovan Ferreira moving to the Rajasthan Royals in exchange.

4. Rinku Singh

Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) batter and Uttar Pradesh captain Rinku Singh struggled in the quarterfinal against Saurashtra. He scored 13 runs off 20 balls and went wicketless in two overs, giving away 15 runs. Uttar Pradesh lost the match by 17 runs.

Overall, Rinku scored 421 runs in eight matches at an average of 105.25, with one century and three half-centuries. He also took two wickets in the tournament. He will next play T20Is against New Zealand before the IPL 2026 season.

5. Zeeshan Ansari

Uttar Pradesh leg-spinner Zeeshan Ansari also had a disappointing quarterfinal. He did not take a wicket and conceded 46 runs in nine overs. Despite this, he is the joint-highest wicket-taker of the tournament with 21 wickets in eight innings. SunRisers Hyderabad (SRH) retained him for his base price of INR 40 lakh ahead of IPL 2026. Last season, he took six wickets in 10 IPL matches at an economy rate of 9.84. After his strong Vijay Hazare Trophy performance, he will aim to continue the form in the IPL.