India U19 captain Ayush Mhatre will be captaining the Mumbai side in the Buchi Babu Tournament starting August 17 in Chennai. This event serves as a warm-up before the domestic season begins, giving players a chance to prepare and showcase their skills ahead of the upcoming competitions.

The Buchi Babu Invitational is an informal but important event, offering cricketers a chance to showcase their skills before the official domestic matches kick off. Teams from various regions participate, providing a competitive environment for players to get match practice and gain momentum.

Following this tournament, the domestic cricket season will officially start with the Duleep Trophy on August 28. For many players like Mhatre, this phase is crucial for gaining experience and proving their abilities to selectors as they aim for higher honours in Indian cricket.

See Also: Three Indian potential Test cricketers who deserve full support in this transition phase

Another Notable Moment in Ayush Mhatre’s Career:

According to the Times of India, Ayush Mhatre will lead Mumbai in the Buchi Babu Invitational Tournament. He impressed with strong performances in domestic cricket last year and IPL 2025, and recently captained India U19 on their England tour, scoring two centuries in unofficial Tests against England Lions. Mumbai will start their tournament journey on August 18.

The report also mentions that Sarfaraz Khan and his brother Musheer are included in the Mumbai squad. Despite strong performances during the India A tour before the Tests, Sarfaraz was overlooked for the national team. Currently, he is playing in the Kanga League.

Musheer, an all-rounder, represents Payyade Sports Club. For the upcoming Duleep Trophy, Sarfaraz has been selected for the West Zone squad, while Musheer is named as a reserve player. Both brothers continue to work hard to make their mark in domestic cricket.

Ayush Mhatre Leads India U19 in England:

Ayush Mhatre recently captained the India Under-19 team during their England tour. Under his guidance, India won the five-match Youth ODI series 3-2 and drew the two-match Youth Test series. Earlier in 2025, Mhatre made his IPL debut playing for Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in the tournament’s edition, showcasing his growing talent on bigger stages.

Indian cricketer Safaraz Khan's brother 20-year-old Musheer Khan is in dream form with the bat while serving for Mumbai Emerging (U23), who are busy on the England tour. The right-handed top-order batter has smashed centuries in all three matches in the ongoing tour. 

Musheer Khan smashed 3 centuries in four innings in England

In the ongoing England tour, Mumbai Emerging have a schedule of five two-day matches and five one-day matches against local teams. Starting the tour MCA Colts against Notts 2nd XI, Musheer Khan scored 123 runs off 149 balls with 16 fours as an opener. His team won that fixture by the first innings lead.

MCA Emerging then faced Challengers (Combined National Counties), where the visitors once again claimed a win on first innings lead, and Musheer scored 125 off 127 balls with 11 fours and one six in the second innings of his team's innings. However, he was dismissed for one run in the first innings of that match.  

From Monday (July 7), MCA Emerging Players are facing Loughborough UCCE. After the visitors chose to bat first, they scored 384/5 in 60 overs. This time, the opener Musheer scored 154 off 146 balls with 22 fours and two sixes, while his innings ended in retired hurt. 

So, in four innings of this England tour, Musheer hit three centuries to send a strong statement to the national selectors. However, this is not the only big statement from Musheer in this tour. 

See Also: 'At This Stage of My Career...' - Prithvi Shaw reflects on his journey after joins Maharashtra team ahead of domestic season

Musheer Khan dominated with the ball: Two 6-fers and one 10-wicket haul

As a left-arm spinner, Musheer Khan has also recorded two six-fers and one ten-wicket haul in this England tour. In the first game against Notts 2nd XI, he recorded a six-wicket haul (6/31) and later one more wicket (1/44).

In their next match against Challengers, the left-arm spinner recorded a ten-wicket haul in the match (10/94) after another six-fer (6/38 & 4/56) in the opposition's first innings. Without any doubt, he won Player of the Match awards in both those games. 

The star RCB player, Virat Kohli has faced severe backlash for allegedly making a disrespectful remark towards Musheer Khan, a young batter, during IPL 2025's Qualifier 1 match against Punjab Kings, played in Mullanpur, on Thursday, 29 May.The controversy erupted when the star RCB player was caught on camera sledging the youngster as the 20-year-old walked out to bat on his IPL debut.

After the video surfaced, several Social media users took note that the former RCB skipper called Musheer a "waterboy," and was caught saying "Ye paani pilata hai" (This guy carries drinks). Even though the video clip has gone viral, it has not been verified independently by reputable news outlets. The purported comment received sharp reactions from potential fans on the internet who called Kohli out for his wording, especially considering Musheer's age and the pressure of making his debut. A lot of people thought that while Kohli's intensity and aggression are well-known, mocking a young debutant was over the line.

See Also: IPL 2025: Dropped English batter likely to open for MI in crucial Eliminator game vs GT

The legendary India batter and former RCB skipper was animated throughout the match, celebrating dismissals with passion, but the sledge aimed at Musheer appeared to overshadow his on-field performance. Critics urged the IPL and RCB management to address the incident, sparking a debate around the spirit of the game and the responsibility senior players hold in supporting emerging talent on such a big stage.

Watch the video here;

. @imVkohli : "Paani pilata hai yeh" (he serves water to others) (Laughing)

"I really dislike this attitude from Kohli. Yes, Musheer Khan serves water to the team when he's on the bench, and don't forget, he's a player." #RCBvsPBKS @RCBTweets pic.twitter.com/UWN1ZFioYJ

— KK 🦅 (@KK_apjsp) May 30, 2025

RCB reached Finals of IPL 2025

Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) secured a spot in the IPL final for the first time in nine years with a commanding eight-wicket victory over Punjab Kings (PBKS) in Qualifier 1 at New Chandigarh. No problems batting on a lively surface, PBKS fell apart, getting bowled out for just 101 from 14.1 overs. PBKS faced early pressure with the new ball from Yash Dayal and Josh Hazlewood, and Suyash Sharma bagged 3 wickets and added to Punjab’s woes. PBKS had enough batting in the order, but with partnerships harder to come by, PBKS lost wickets regularly.

In reply, RCB chased down the small target with ease. Phil Salt got things started with a blinding half-century from 23 balls (the fastest half-century of his IPL career); he finished with 56 off 27 balls. Virat Kohli was dismissed early, but Salt and Rajat Patidar were able to hit the winning runs with 10 overs to spare. PBKS still have a second chance to enter the final, as they will play the winner of the Eliminator between the Gujarat Titans and Mumbai Indians in Qualifier 2, but RCB now sit just one win away from their first IPL title.

Sarfaraz Khan is slowly growing as an important cricketer after his remarkable batting performances in his early international career. Surely, we are set to see his international cricket journey, which has a huge patience story with an unshakable dedication.  

Father Naushad Khan had a dream to represent the Indian national cricket team. While his cricket career didn’t see wider success, his sons are fulfilling his dream and setting an inspirational story.

Father fought hard

After completing his cricket career in Mumbai, Naushad Khan started as a coach. Under his coaching, a lot of cricketers have shined at youth ages, including Iqbal Abdulla and Kamran Khan. 

Naushad started his sons' cricket coaching at an early age. Just like the other students of his coaching center, Naushad also set up morning training and a particular diet plan for his sons. 

Naushad learned Sarfaraz Khan’s cricketing talent at an early age, as his eldest son had a great talent for timing the ball well. As his sons got a perfect cricket atmosphere, their ambition for the sport grew from childhood. Due to his cricket commitments, Sarfaraz even didn’t attend school for four years. During that time, a private tutor taught him the math and English. 

Tumhaare mein talent hai toh apne bachchon ko khilaake dikhao na

While Naushad worked hard with his children and the other talented young boys, he was hurt in a few incidents. In 2016, he revealed one incident. While his coaching helped Iqbal Abdulla to shine at a young age, Abdulla later said, according to Naushad’s interview with Indian Express, “That is when he spoke those unforgettable words, Mere mein kabiliyat thi, main khela. Tumhaare mein talent hai toh apne bachchon ko khilaake dikhao na. (I had the ability, so I played. If you have the talent, then make your son play and show the world.”  

Harris Shield record

Sarfaraz came to the limelight in Indian cricket at a very early age. At the age of 12 years, Sarfaraz broke Sachin Tendulkar’s Harris Shield record by scoring 439 runs off 421 balls for Rizvi Springfield. It was his first Harris Shield match where the right-handed batter hit 56 fours and 12 sixes. 

Impressive in U19 cricket

Soon Sarfaraz started to play for Mumbai U19 as well as India U19. In 2013, during a quadrangular series in India, India U19 batter Sarfaraz scored a match-winning 66-ball 101 runs against South Africa in a chase.  

Sarfaraz played two ICC U19 Cricket World Cups as he served for India U19 in 2014 and 2016. While he scored 211 runs in six innings (average 70.33) with two half-centuries in 2014, he was the second-leading run-scorer in 2016 after scoring 355 runs in six innings (average 71.00) with five half-centuries. In the 2016 edition, the India U19 team finished as the runners-up. 

ICC U19 World Cup records

Sarfaraz was the second player to record five 50+ scores in a single edition of the ICC U19 Cricket World Cup (after Australian Brett Williams in 1988). At present, he is among four batters to achieve this record. Meanwhile, he still holds the record for most 50+ scores in the ICC U19 Cricket World Cup history with seven half-centuries.  

One of the youngest IPL debutants

Sarfaraz’s youth cricket performances were enough to tell the cricket world that he would carry a long run in the cricket world. Before his second U19 World Cup, he already made his domestic cricket debut as well as his IPL debut. Royal Challengers Bangalore bought him for INR 50 lakhs for the IPL 2015, where he made his IPL debut. 

According to present ESPNcricinfo Statsguru information, at the age of 17 years and 182 days, Sarfaraz made his IPL debut against Chennai Super Kings and became the second youngest to make an IPL debut. In his second IPL innings, he scored 45 not out off 21 balls with six fours and one six. 

Sarfaraz Khan stunned in retention

Sarfaraz was the only uncapped player to be retained by a franchise for the IPL 2016. During the IPL 2016, although he played some useful cameos for RCB, he was dropped from the team due to his fitness problem. Although he scored only 66 runs in five matches, his batting strike rate was 212.90. 

For the IPL 2018, Sarfaraz was retained by the RCB, while Chris Gayle, KL Rahul, Kedar Jadhav, and Yuzvendra Chahal were ignored. However, due to his poor form, he was released before the IPL 2019 auction. 

From 2019 to 2021, Sarfaraz served for Punjab Kings. Between 2022 and 2023, Sarfaraz served for Delhi Capitals, where he kept wicket for one match in 2023. 

In his IPL career, Sarfaraz has played 50 matches to score 585 runs with an average of 22.50, including one half-century. The right-hander has a 130.58 batting strike rate in his IPL career. 

Impressive first-class career

While Sarfaraz started his domestic cricket career for Mumbai after making his debut in three domestic formats in 2014, he served for Uttar Pradesh in the 2015/16 season. After one season, he returned to serve for Mumbai.

In his 51 first-class matches, the right-handed batter has scored 4422 runs with an incredible average of 69.09. He has recorded 15 centuries and 14 half-centuries. His highest score in first-class cricket is 301 not out against Uttar Pradesh in the 2019/20 Ranji Trophy. 

Although he was a wicketkeeper at a young age, he restarted the keeping in senior cricket in 2022. 

Sarfaraz has also played 37 List A games and 96 T20s, where he has scored 629 runs (average 34.94) with two centuries and 1188 runs (average 22.41) with three half-centuries, respectively. 

Despite performing consistently in domestic first-class cricket, Sarfaraz was initially not included in the Indian squad. He scored 900+ runs in successive first-class seasons. However, he was ignored for the national team selection due to his fitness and on-field and off-field disciplinary issues. 

Turning point

Last January, during the England Lions tour of India, Sarfaraz scored 96 runs for India A in a tour game and then scored 4 and 55 runs in the first first-class match and 161 runs in the second fixture. These performances ultimately helped him to earn the national team call-up as the replacement for the injured players. 

Finally, the dream Test debut

During the Rajkot Test against England last February, Sarfaraz ultimately made his international debut. He scored 62 and 68 not out on his Test debut, as he became the fourth Indian to score two 50+ scores on the Test debut. Among the Test debutant players with twin 50+ scores, Sarfaraz recorded the highest strike rate with 94.20. In that home Test series, Sarfaraz scored 200 runs in five innings with an average of 50.00, including three half-centuries.  

In the ongoing domestic cricket season, while Sarfaraz was disappointed in the Duleep Trophy, he scored an unbeaten double-century (222*) against the Rest of India, which ultimately ended in a winning cause (Mumbai won on 1st innings lead). 

So, there is no surprise with his incredible 150-run knock in the Bengaluru Test against New Zealand, while the Indian team was under pressure. 

Musheer Khan: Brother of Sarfaraz Khan

While Sarfaraz Khan has already started to shine, his brother Musheer Khan is also growing fast. The 19-year-old has scored 716 runs in nine first-class matches with an average of 51.14. The right-handed batter has already scored three centuries and one half-century. His first first-class hundred was a double century (203*) against Baroda during the quarter-final of the Ranji Trophy 2023/24. 

In the recent Duleep Trophy 2024/25, Musheer started the tournament with a knock of 181 runs. 

As a left-arm spinner, Musheer has also picked up eight wickets in his first-class career.