STARS GALORE: ROKO RETURN TO ACTION IN VIJAY HAZARE

With several international stars, including the two former India captains, turning up for their state teams, all eyes will be on the 50-over event which begins today

- GOMESH S @Chennai

WHEN the Ranji Trophy season resumed in early 2025 after the white-ball tournaments, all eyes were on the multi-day tournament for one reason. Under immense pressure after the 1-3 hammering they received Down Under, most India internationals had to turn up for their respective state sides. And some, including former captains Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, did so after almost a decade.

India internationals playing domestic cricket had gone out of fashion in the second half of 2010s, but in early 2024, the BCCI brought on a mandate to ensure the stars of the sport show up for their states. It was one of the main reasons why Ishan Kishan and Shreyas Iyer were dropped from the central contract list the same year. So in the aftermath of the Australia series, when Rohit and Kohli turned up for Ranji Trophy in February 2025, there was a lot of attention towards the duo. In fact, it almost led to a stampede in Delhi when Kohli played against Railways. They did not do much with the bat and ended up playing their final first-class match before retiring from red-ball cricket in the months that followed.