The invitational red-ball tournament, called the Buchi Babu Trophy, has reached its third round for the 2025 season of the event. For several years, it served as a great opportunity for the players to get the best platform to polish themselves before the Duleep Trophy and the domestic season of the tournament. A few players didn’t participate in the first day after the third day clashes with the start of the Duleep Trophy 2025.

Prithvi Shaw, who smashed a fine century during the first round of the tournament for Maharashtra, didn’t turn up for the game. However, there were a few stars like Sarfaraz Khan and Ruturaj Gaikwad, both of whom celebrated their respective centuries to keep the best form before the domestic red-ball season.

See Also: [WATCH] Rohit Sharma's hilarious reaction on meeting his friend during an event in Mumbai

Musheer Khan got another start, but the promising batter failed to convert it into a huge score. After his scores of 30 and nine in the first round, opening the batting, he fell for another 30 against Haryana in the third round. Gaikwad fell for 133 while Sarfaraz finished with the respective knock of 111 runs.

Buchi Babu Trophy 2025 Round 3: All Scores from Day 1

The all-rounder of the Hyderabad side, Rohith Rayudu, picked up a five-wicket haul. His fine figures of 5/44 were instrumental in bowling out Madhya Pradesh for 181 runs in the first innings on the opening day of the third round. Bengal bowled out the TNCA XI for 203 runs in the first innings, on Rahul Prasad’s 5/44. Bengal lost four wickets as Abhishek Porel walked out to bat at number six.

The Kolkata Knight Riders pacer, Umran Malik, who couldn’t play the last IPL due to injury, turned up for Jammu Kashmir and picked up two wickets in his fiery spell of nine overs. Ashwin Kulkani, the seam-bowling all-rounder from Maharashtra, who played the U19 World Cup 2024, also celebrated a century.

Buchi Babu Trophy 2025 Round 3: All Scores from Day 1

TNCA President's XI 266 vs Chhatisgarh 4-0
TNCA XI 203 vs Bengal 58-4
Mumbai 346-9 vs Haryana
Indian Railways 184 vs Baroda 76-3
Madhya Pradesh 181 vs Hyderabad 155-1
Jharkhand 366-8 vs Punjab
Odisha CA 314 vs Jammu & Kashmir
Maharashtra 440 vs Himachal Pradesh

The captain of the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) from the Indian Premier League (IPL), Ruturaj Gaikwad, is currently playing for the Maharashtra side in the third round of the Buchi Babu Trophy 2025 in Tamil Nadu. The 27-year-old batter didn’t celebrate his century for the state side against Himachal Pradesh at the TI Murugappa ground.

Coming out to bat at the number three position, in the absence of their opening batter, Prithvi Shaw, Gaikwad crossed the 100-run mark in just 122 balls. At the end of the 63 overs in their innings with the bat, the veteran was on 104 runs in just 131 balls as he had hammered 10 boundaries.

See Also: [WATCH] 'Feeling good...'- Suryakumar Yadav reflects on recovery from injury at BCCI CoE

Ruturaj Gaikwad just timed the ball into the cover region and went for a single, and didn’t celebrate the century. It felt like a relief for the batter, who perhaps had the monkey off his back. The experienced campaigner, who has already featured in six ODIs and 23 T20Is for India, played in his first match of the event and returned with low scores of one and 11 runs against Chhattisgarh.

Watch: Ruturaj Gaikwad refuses to celebrate century during Buchi Babu Trophy 2025 

Gaikwad missed the lion’s share of the IPL 2025 for the CSK franchise after he picked up a wrist injury. In his absence, the former captain and wicket-keeper batter of the side, MS Dhoni, led the side. Gaikwad’s last game for the national side came in July against Zimbabwe.

Bro didn't celebrate his century 😭 pic.twitter.com/iXmMrGGCVD

— ` (@WorshipDhoni) August 26, 2025

The Chennai opening batter has already smacked 2502 runs in 70 innings of the IPL at an average of 40.35 and a strike rate of 137.47, with the help of 20 half-centuries and two centuries at the best score of unbeaten 108 runs. The yellow franchise will be hoping to get back the opening batter in the side before the 2026 season of the Indian Premier League (IPL).

In the other game, Sarfaraz Khan smashed 92 runs in 92 balls at the end of 62 overs in Mumbai’s first innings during their encounter against Haryana, with the help of eight boundaries and four sixes. The Duleep Trophy 2025 will begin in Bengaluru from August 28, where many skillful players will feature for the zonal teams.

The Chennai Super Kings’ captain, Ruturaj Gaikwad, had a fun interaction with the youngsters at the Super Kings Academy after the end of the Buchi Babu Trophy 2025, where the opening batter entertained the kids with his humor and playful responses. Gaikwad didn’t play the full season of the IPL 2025 after he got ruled out due to injury.

The 28-year-old Indian player was in a light mood when he answered various questions from the kids, often running the questions and answers into jokes. However, the most memorable moment came when the Maharashtra captain asked the lads to reveal their favorite IPL teams that they have been supporting.

See Also: PCB bans YouTuber after Mohammed Hafeez's statement on Mohsin Naqvi before Asia Cup 2025

When a few replied with the names of RCB and MI, he was quick to respond ‘out, out’ before counting the number of non-CSK fans as he joked, ‘Everyone will remember your name, and no one will pick you for CSK.’ It was a hilarious moment altogether as one of the kids expressed his love for the five-time champions, to which Gaikwad confirmed that CSK should always come first.

Watch: Ruturaj Gaikwad eliminates RCB and MI fans from fun banter at Super Kings academy

The right-handed opening batter, who has overall smashed 2502 runs in 70 IPL innings, has crossed the 350-run mark in every season since 2021, apart from 2025, when he got 122 runs in five innings at an average of 24.40 and a strike rate of 150.61, with the help of two half-centuries at the best score of 63 runs.

CUTEST VIDEO OF THE DAY. 😂🔥

- Ruturaj Gaikwad having fun banter with CSK Academy talents. pic.twitter.com/JNE3FkTSId

— Johns. (@CricCrazyJohns) August 22, 2025

The banter didn’t stop for the Super Kings academy fans. When asked to share his experience of playing and leading the five-time champions, Gaikwad added, ‘I am playing for CSK. Very good experience. I enjoyed it a lot. I scolded all seniors.’ He also jokingly said of slapping the player to handle their poor performance in the field.

On a question of the best wicket-keeper in India, where many anticipated Gaikwad to shed light on MS Dhoni’s name, the CSK captain cheekily took his name and said, ‘Best? You didn’t see my keeping? You watch YouTube. Instead of watching Shoaib Akhtar, watch me keeping.”

After an excellent day on the opening day of the first round of the Buchi Babu Trophy 2025 in Chennai, all eyes were on some other Indian players with the bat and ball in hand. A few of them stood out with cracking performances, while a few continued to struggle in finding their rhythm and flow in the all-around department.

Musheer Khan, who made 30 runs in the first innings, did his bit with the ball against TNCA XI with four wickets. Odisha’s captain, Swastik Samal, while opening the batting, celebrated a fine century in Odisha’s response of 300 runs. The right-arm pacer for TNCA President’s XI, CV Achyuth, picked up a five-wicket haul.

See Also: India announce 15-member squad for ICC Women's ODI World Cup 2025

Railways’ Vanshaj Shamra has now picked up two fifers in his last three first-class encounters. Anustup Majumdar, the Bengal captain, who turned 41 this year, is leading the way against Haryana with a century. Tushar Raheja, the Tamil Nadu batter, also topped the charts with a century against Mumbai.

Buchi Babu Trophy 2025 Round 1: All Scores from Day 2

For Maharashtra, Ruturaj Gaikwad returned to the dressing room for just one run with the bat. However, their new inclusion into the team, Prithivi Shaw, smashed a fine century as he shifted his base from Mumbai to Maharashtra. The right-handed batter displayed excellent batting skills to put up a huge score on the board.

The Kolkata Knight Riders and India’s T20I batter, Ramandeep Singh, also recorded his century in just 95 balls and ended with 111 off 101 balls with the help of eight sixes. It was an incredible return for several players, who will now look to continue the same flow for the start of the Ranji Trophy 2025-26 season.

Buchi Babu Trophy 2025 Round 1: All Scores from Day 2

TNCA President's XI 274 & 131-1 v Himachal Pradesh 214

Mumbai 412-5 v TNCA XI 325-5

Chhattisgarh 252 & 43-2 v Maharashtra 217

J&K 393-5 v Railways 221-8

Baroda 381-6 v Odisha 352

Haryana 415-9 v Bengal 381

Jharkhand 176 & 107-3 v MP 317-6

Punjab 348-5 v Hyderabad 262-6

The invitational competition, named Buchi Babu Tournament, began as a memorial event in 1909/10. For many years, it has served as a great chance for the players to feature in the game ahead of the domestic season 2024-25. In 2023, it returned after a six-year gap. On the opening day of the event, several national players participated in the competition.

Sarfaraz Khan, the middle-order batter of the Indian side, was ignored from the selection of the BGT 2024-25 and the five-match Test series in England last month despite his 150 in Bengaluru against New Zealand in the second innings of the opening game.

See Also: "Doesn't happen by..."- Former India star shares suggestion for Shubman Gill ahead of Asia Cup 2025

All three three-day games are scheduled to be played from August 18 to 20.  TNCA President’s XI took on HPCA at the Goja College A Ground while TNCA XI faced Mumbai at the nearly ground. Chhattisgarh locked horns with Maharashtra in Gurunanak College, while Jammu and Kashmir met Indian Railways. Odisha came against Baroda in CPT IP while AM Jain College hosted the game between Hayana and Bengal.

Buchi Babu Trophy 2025 Round 1: All scores from Day 1

Ruturaj Gaikwad, who was ruled out after the first two weeks of the IPL, has returned to the action and picked up a wicket with his rare off-spin bowling. Agitesh G smacked an unbeaten knock of 71 runs in 89 balls for TNCA President’s XI as they recovered to 256/9 from 185/8. Prabhsimran Singh celebrated a fifty.

Haryana’s number nine batter, Ajay Singh, drilled a fine fifty in just 28 balls to shoulder them to 415/9. Madhya Pradesh’s teenager, Rohit Rajawat, the 19-year-old off-spinner, finished with 5/49 against Jharkhand, who were bowled out for just 176. Shubman Gill’s U-19 batchmate, Himanshu Rana, recorded a fine century. Mumbai’s two openers, captain Ayush Mhatre and Musheer Khan, couldn’t contribute much.

Buchi Babu Trophy 2025 Round 1: All scores from Day 1 stumps

TNCA President's XI 256-9 vs Himachal Pradesh

Mumbai 376-5 vs TNCA XI

Chhattisgarh 252 all out vs Maharashtra

J&K 393-5 vs Railways

Baroda 381-6 vs Odisha

Haryana 415-9 vs Bengal

Punjab 187-4 vs Hyderabad

Jharkhand 176 vs MP 60-0

The prestigious Buchi Babu Invitational cricket tournament 2025 began today with Maharashtra facing Chhattisgarh in one of the opening fixtures. The match saw Ruturaj Gaikwad and Prithvi Shaw playing together for the first time since Shaw’s switch to Maharashtra, and both made solid contributions on day one. Gaikwad later showcased his part-time bowling skills, while Shaw impressed in the field with three sharp catches. Their presence added significant strength to Maharashtra’s lineup, setting the tone for an engaging start to the competition.

Maharashtra’s bowlers enjoyed a productive outing, with Hitesh Walunj and Vicky Ostwal leading the attack. Both claimed three wickets each to dismantle Chhattisgarh’s batting order. Despite these breakthroughs, Maharashtra struggled to dismiss the final pair, as Shashank Tiwari and Sourabh Majumdar stood firm at the crease. Their gritty partnership frustrated the opposition for nearly four overs, resisting the relentless efforts of the Maharashtra bowlers and delaying the inevitable end to the innings.

Finally, Maharashtra captain Ankeet Bawne introduced Ruturaj Gaikwad into the bowling attack for the final over of the day. Although Gaikwad conceded a six early in the over, he responded immediately with a clever caught-and-bowled dismissal of Majumdar. That crucial wicket not only broke the stubborn partnership but also wrapped up Chhattisgarh’s innings at 252 runs in 89.3 overs. Gaikwad’s timely strike gave Maharashtra momentum heading into the next day, ensuring they ended on a positive note after a long day in the field.

See Also: Jasprit Bumrah to be rested for Asia Cup 2025? Former India captain sparks debate

Watch the video here:

Ruturaj came to bowl last (90th) over of the day, got hit for Six and then took the last (10th) wicket by caught and bowled ! 😂🔥 pic.twitter.com/QvGOw5CZQh

— Max Unwell (@thalaterritory) August 18, 2025

Maharashtra dismissed Chattisgarh for 252

The Tamil Nadu Cricket Association (TNCA) will conduct the All India Buchi Babu Invitational Cricket Tournament 2025 from August 18 to September 9. The event was first held in the season of 1909/10 and is named for Mothavarapu Venkata Mahipathi Naidu who was recognised as the father of cricket in Tamil Nadu. After a 12 year break, the tournament returned last year.

This year will see 14 teams competing along with two teams that are selected by the TNCA, called President's XI and TNCA XI. The matches will be played at different venues in Chennai, and the champions will receive ₹3 lakh prize money while the runners up will receive ₹2 lakh.

See Also: Why Akash Deep’s new dream car sparked a registration controversy?

Buchi Babu Invitational Cricket Tournament 2025 Format

• The competition will see 16 teams divided into four groups of four. Each side will face the other three teams in their group once.
• League-stage matches will span three days. In the first innings, each team will have 90 overs, while the second innings will be restricted to 45 overs per side.
• Knockout fixtures will be four-day contests, with each innings consisting of 90 overs. The winner of each group will progress to the semifinals.

Buchi Babu Invitational Cricket Tournament 2025: Live Streaming Details

All matches of the All India Buchi Babu Invitational Cricket Tournament 2025 will be streamed live on the official TNCA YouTube channel.

Buchi Babu Invitational Cricket Tournament 2025 Groups

Group A: TNCA President’s XI, Himachal Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Maharashtra
Group B: Railways, Jammu & Kashmir, Baroda, Odisha
Group C: TNCA XI, Mumbai, Haryana, Bengal
Group D: Hyderabad, Punjab, Madhya Pradesh, Jharkhand

Buchi Babu Invitational Cricket Tournament 2025 Schedule

Round 1 (August 18 to 20)

• TNCA President’s XI vs HPCA – Gojan College A Ground

• TNCA XI vs Mumbai – Gojan College B Ground

• Chhattisgarh vs Maharashtra – Gurunanak College

• Jammu & Kashmir vs Indian Railways – MRF-Pachiyappa’s

• Odisha vs Baroda – CPT IP

• Haryana vs Bengal – AM Jain College

• MPCA vs Jharkhand – SRM College

• Hyderabad vs Punjab – Murugappa Ground

Round 2 (August 22 to 24)

• TNCA XI vs Haryana – Gojan College A Ground

• TNCA President’s XI vs Maharashtra – Gojan College B Ground

• Hyderabad vs Jharkhand – Gurunanak College

• Punjab vs MPCA – MRF-Pachiyappa’s

• Chhattisgarh vs HPCA – SSN College

• Jammu & Kashmir vs Baroda – Murugappa Ground

• Mumbai vs Bengal – IIT Madras

• Indian Railways vs Odisha – SRM College

Round 3 (August 26 to 28)

• TNCA President’s XI vs Chhattisgarh – Gojan College A Ground

• TNCA XI vs Bengal – Gojan College B Ground

• Mumbai vs Haryana – MRF-Pachiyappa’s

• Indian Railways vs Baroda – Gurunanak College

• Hyderabad vs MPCA – AM Jain College

• Punjab vs Jharkhand – CPT IP

• Jammu & Kashmir vs Odisha – SSN College

• Maharashtra vs HPCA – Murugappa Ground

Semifinals (August 31 to September 3)

• Winner Group A vs Winner Group B

• Winner Group C vs Winner Group D

Final (September 6 to 9)

• Venues for the knockout stages will be announced later.

Buchi Babu Invitational Cricket Tournament 2025 Squads

Maharashtra: Ankit Bawane (c), Ruturaj Gaikwad, Prithvi Shaw, Siddhesh Veer, Sachin Dhas, Arshin Kulkarni, Harshal Kate, Siddharth Mhatre, Saurabh Nawale (wk), Mandar Bhandari (wk), Ramakrishna Ghosh, Mukesh Choudhary, Pradeep Dadhe, Vicky Ostwal, Hitesh Walunj, Prashant Solanki, Rajvardhan Hangargekar

Mumbai: Ayush Mhatre (c), Musheer Khan, Divyansh Saxena, Sarfaraz Khan, Suved Parker (vc), Pragnesh Kanpillewar, Harsh Aghav, Sairaj Patil, Aakash Parkar, Aakash Anand (wk), Hardik Tamore (wk), Shreyas Gurav, Yash Dicholkar, Himanshu Singh, Roystan Dias, Sylvester D’souza, Irfan Umair

TNCA President’s XI: Pradosh Ranjan Paul (c), C. Andre Siddarth (vc), B. Indrajith, Vijay Shankar, R. Vimal Khumar, S. Radhakrishnan, S. Lokeshwar, G. Ajitesh, J. Hemchudeshan, R.S. Ambrish, C.V. Achyuth, H. Trilok Nag, P. Saravana Kumar, P. Vidyuth, K. Abhinav

TNCA XI: M. Shahrukh Khan (c), Boopathi Vaishna Kumar (vc), B. Sachin, M. Siddharth, Tushar Raheja, Kiran Karthikeyan, S. Mohamed Ali, S. Rithik Easwaran, S.R. Athish, S. Lakshay Jain, D.T. Chandrasekar, P. Vignesh, R. Sonu Yadav, D. Deepesh, J. Prem Kumar, A. Esakkimuthu, T.D. Lokesh Raj

Jammu & Kashmir: Qamran Iqbal, Vivrant Sharma, Paras Dogra, Yawer Hassan, Abdul Samad, Musaif Ajaz, Kawalpreet Singh, Shivansh Sharma, Abid Mushtaq, Dikshant Kundal, Umran Malik, Umar Nazir, Rohit Sharma, Vanshaj Sharma, Sunil Kumar, Sahil Lotra

Bengal: Sudip Gharami, Anustup Majumdar, Abishek Porel, Sumanta Gupta, Aditya Purohit, Saurabh Singh, Chinmoy Singh, Vishal Bhati, Aishik Patel, Karanlal, Vikash Singh (Jr), Aamir Gani, Rahul Prasad, Mukesh Kumar, Suraj Sindhu Jaiswal, Ishan Porel, Yudhajit Guha, Nuruddin Mondal, Kanishk Seth, Sumit Mohanta, Subham Sarkar

Rajasthan Royals (RR) captain Sanju Samson reportedly wants to leave the franchise, while the inaugural IPL champions are reportedly searching for a strong alternative. There is new progress in this story, as the franchise is reportedly knocking on the door of Chennai Super Kings (CSK) for a trade deal.

Rajasthan Royals' most capped player and most capped captain with a record number of wins, Sanju Samson, reportedly wants to leave the franchise since the end of IPL 2025. He made his IPL debut for the franchise in 2013, and apart from 2016 and 2017, when the Royals were suspended and he served for Delhi Daredevils (presently known as Delhi Capitals), he has served for the franchise in every IPL season. However, the present RR skipper isn't reportedly happy with the franchise due to the lack of decision-making freedom in the late stages of the last IPL season, including losing his opening batting spot to the youngsters Yashasvi Jaiswal and Vaibhav Suryavanshi.

See Also: 'Riyan Parag is the reason...'- Former CSK batter reveals why Sanju Samson wants to leave RR ahead of IPL 2026

IPL 2026 trade: Sanju Samson out for either Ravindra Jadeja, Ruturaj Gaikwad, or Shivam Dube

While Samson is reportedly desperate to leave the franchise, the Rajasthan Royals are reportedly looking for the best trade deal option at the moment. According to the latest Cricbuzz report, RR want either Ravindra Jadeja, Ruturaj Gaikwad, or Shivam Dube for the trade of Samson. 

Ruturaj Gaikwad is 6th leading IPL run-scorer since 2021

Ruturaj Gaikwad is the present CSK captain, who missed out on the second half of the IPL 2025 due to injury, where MS Dhoni returned to lead the franchise. In 71 IPL matches, he has scored 2502 runs with an average of 40.35 and a strike rate of 137.47, including two centuries and 20 half-centuries. While he has played four complete IPL seasons (2021 to 2024), he scored 500+ runs in three of those seasons. Since 2021, he has been the sixth-highest run-scorer in IPL.

Ravindra Jadeja and Shivam Dube previously played for Rajasthan Royals

Meanwhile, the all-rounders Ravindra Jadeja and Shivam Dube both previously played for Rajasthan Royals, while the former was a key member during winning the inaugural IPL title (2008). Jadeja served for Royals between 2008 and 2009, where he played 27 matches. In the meantime, Dube served for Royals in the 2021 edition and played nine games. 

Ruturaj Gaikwad, the Indian opening batter and the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) captain, has started practicing in the nets for the upcoming 2025 season of the Duleep Trophy as the CSK franchise released a video of his net session. The right-handed batter will feature for the West Zone team. He was ruled out of the previous season of the IPL due to an injury.

Later, MS Dhoni led the charge in the rest of the event. Gaikwad was inconsistent with just 122 runs in five clashes at an average of 24.40 and two half-centuries, while under his leadership, they won only one of the five games of the season. He signed for Yorkshire in the County Championship 2025 but backed out at the last moment due to personal reasons.

See Also: Unreal numbers in viewership records created during England vs India 2025 Test series

Along with Gaikwad, some of the notable international players to feature in the red-ball domestic tournament are Yashasvi Jaiswal, Sarfaraz Khan, and Shreyas Iyer, who are part of the same team. Shardul Thakur has been named as the leader of the side, despite his inexperience in this department in the first-class format for Mumbai.

Watch: Ruturaj Gaikwad prepares for upcoming Duleep Trophy 2025

The 28-year-old has smashed an overall 2632 runs in 65 innings of the first-class format at an average of 41.77 and a strike rate of nearly 60, with the help of 14 half-centuries and seven centuries at the best score of 195 runs. His last clash in the field came in the first week of April this year against the Punjab Kings.

Keeping the drive going! 💪🔥 #WhistlePodu pic.twitter.com/QM8GPxxNEc

— Chennai Super Kings (@ChennaiIPL) August 12, 2025

In the video, released by the Super Kings, Gaikwad was seen to go through batting drills against various bowlers. It will be a vital tournament for the Maharashtra batter, who will look to get back in his old rhythm with the bat post-injury.

A few days ago, Ruturaj turned up in Chennai alongside Dhoni in an event where they, reportedly, discussed the planning for the franchise ahead of the mini auction of the league for the upcoming season. There are discussions of the franchise showing their interest in Sanju Samson while parting ways with the veteran spin bowling all-rounder, Ravichandran Ashwin.

Rohit Sharma guided India to glory in the 2025 Champions Trophy earlier this year, adding another feather to his illustrious career. His leadership played a pivotal role in steering the team to success.

However, in recent weeks, speculation has intensified regarding his future in international cricket. The 38-year-old has already stepped away from certain formats, signaling that the twilight of his career may be approaching.

Rohit announced his retirement from T20Is after last year’s T20 World Cup. He later decided to end his Test career ahead of the England tour, following a challenging 2024-25 Border-Gavaskar Trophy in Australia, where his performances fell short of expectations.

See Also: Star Indian all-rounder likely to miss out as BCCI plans vice-captaincy change for Asia Cup: Report

Rohit Sharma’s Future in ODI in Debacle:

On Sunday, August 10, mixed reports surfaced about Rohit Sharma’s future in international cricket. According to Dainik Jagran, both Rohit and Virat Kohli might retire after the Australia series in October, as they reportedly do not feature in India’s plans for the 2027 World Cup.

However, news agency PTI quoted BCCI sources who dismissed these claims, stating that no official decision has been made regarding Rohit’s retirement. The uncertainty has fueled widespread discussion among fans and cricket experts about whether the Champions Trophy-winning captain is nearing the end of his international journey.

Players Who Might be Choices For Rohit Sharma:

Realistically, Rohit Sharma will be 40 when the next ODI World Cup arrives, making his inclusion in the tournament doubtful. With this in mind, attention shifts to identifying suitable replacements. Here’s a look at three potential candidates who could take over the opener’s role in India’s ODI lineup ahead of the 2027 World Cup.

• Yashasvi Jaiswal

Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill’s strong opening partnership in ODIs has kept Yashasvi Jaiswal out of the 50-over XI. The young left-hander has played just one ODI to date, debuting against England in Nagpur this February, where he scored 15 before being dismissed.

If the selectors opt to move on from Rohit Sharma in ODIs, Yashasvi Jaiswal could be a prime choice to partner Shubman Gill at the top. Jaiswal’s List A numbers further strengthen his case. In 33 matches, he has piled up 1,526 runs at an impressive average of 52.62 and a strike rate of 85.97. His record features five hundreds, seven half-centuries, and a career-best score of 203, underlining his ability to play long innings and adapt to different match situations.

• KL Rahul

KL Rahul is another potential candidate to move up as an opener. The Karnataka batter has previous experience in the role, having opened the innings for India on several occasions. Notably, he also took on the opening responsibility during the 2019 World Cup, showcasing his adaptability and ability to provide solid starts at the top of the order when required.

KL Rahul has opened in 23 innings, scoring 915 runs at an average of 43.57, including 3 centuries and 6 fifties. He usually stepped in as an opener when Shikhar Dhawan or Rohit Sharma was injured. With Rohit’s future uncertain, India might consider promoting KL Rahul to open regularly, giving him a chance to solidify his place at the top of the batting order once again.

• Ruturaj Gaikwad

Ruturaj Gaikwad is another potential candidate to succeed Rohit Sharma as India’s ODI opener. Similar to Yashasvi Jaiswal, the Chennai Super Kings captain has seen limited chances in the 50-over format due to the consistent performances of the Rohit-Gill duo. His solid technique and composure at the crease make him a promising option for the role in the future.

Since making his ODI debut in July 2021, he has played just six matches in the format. In these appearances, he has scored 115 runs at an average of 19.16. His highest score of 71 came against Australia in Mohali in September 2023, where he faced 77 deliveries and struck 10 boundaries.

In addition to representing India in 23 T20Is, Gaikwad brings valuable experience from 86 List A matches. Across 83 innings, he has amassed 4,324 runs at an impressive average of 56.15 and a strike rate of 101.66, including 16 centuries and 17 fifties. His highest score, an unbeaten 220 off 159 balls, came for Maharashtra against UP in the 2022-23 Vijay Hazare Trophy quarterfinal.