Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, and more: When did senior Test players last appear in Ranji Trophy?

Team India lost two consecutive series¡ªone against New Zealand at home and the other against Australia Down Under. While the Kiwis whitewashed the Men in Blue at home, the Aussies registered a 3-1 win in the five-match Test series. In total, India, in the past four months, lost six out of eight Test matches. The blame game started soon after, and the senior players¡ªnamely skipper Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli¡ªfaced the most heat.

?? We wanted to keep fighting, and we fought till the end#TeamIndia Head Coach Gautam Gambhir reflects on the positives from the #AUSvIND series.@GautamGambhir pic.twitter.com/zo6yYLMsit

¡ª BCCI (@BCCI) January 5, 2025

In the midst of this, the Indian Cricket Board (BCCI) issued a clear message for all players to make themselves available for selection in domestic matches. All centrally contracted players who are not selected for national duties, are not injured, and are available for selection¡ªexcept for those with unavoidable reasons¡ªmust play all domestic matches. Non-compliance will result in consequences beyond just disciplinary actions.

While some, like Yashasvi Jaiswal, have already joined their respective domestic sides, the others are expected to follow soon. However, let's take a look at the last time the senior players of the Indian Test team played a Ranji Trophy game.

Rohit Sharma

Mumbai (MUM) vs Uttar Pradesh (UP) - 2015, Wankhede

The Indian captain played in this high-scoring match, scoring 113 in Mumbai's first innings, helping the total reach 610. Shreyas Iyer led with 137, and four other batters registered half-centuries. UP had reached 416 for 6 at one point but were soon reduced to 440 all out. The match ended in a draw, with Mumbai earning 3 points and UP getting 1.

Virat Kohli

Delhi (DEL) vs Uttar Pradesh (UP) - 2012, Ghaziabad

Delhi's line-up was star-studded, including the young Virat Kohli, who scored just 14 and 43 in the two innings, with Bhuvneshwar Kumar dismissing him both times. Delhi were all out for 235 in their first innings, conceding a 168-run lead. Virender Sehwag scored a century in the second innings, but UP claimed an outright win in a tightly contested match.

Jasprit Bumrah

Gujarat (GUJ) vs Jharkhand (JHA) - 2017, Nagpur

It was Gujarat's title-winning season, with Bumrah playing a key role, claiming 24 wickets in 7 matches. In the semi-final against Jharkhand, he delivered a brilliant 6 for 29, helping bowl them out for 111 in their chase of 235. However, he missed the final against Mumbai due to the limited-overs series against England.

Rishabh Pant

Delhi (DEL) vs Vidarbha (VID) - 2018, Indore

The wicketkeeper-batter played in 7 matches for Delhi including the final against Vidarbha. However, while with the bat, he managed only 21 and 32 runs, behind the stumps, he took 5 catches. Despite his efforts, Delhi couldn't secure the win, as Vidarbha claimed their first-ever Ranji Trophy title by 9 wickets.

Ravindra Jadeja

Saurashtra (SAU) vs Tamil Nadu (TN) - 2023, Chennai

Just before the Australia Test series at home, Jadeja played in the group stage, marking his first cricket match in 5 months following a knee surgery. With the bat, he scored 15 and 25, and with the ball, he took 1/48 and 7/53. However, his team lost to Tamil Nadu by 59 runs.

KL Rahul

Karnataka (KAR) vs Bengal (BEN) - 2020, Kolkata

The Indian opener played in the semi-final, where his side lost. He scored 26 in the first innings, but Karnataka was dismissed for just 122 runs. In the second innings, he was dismissed for a duck on the second ball by Ishan Porel while chasing 352 runs. Bengal went on to win by 174 runs.

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