KOCHI: Seventeen-year-old Eden Apple Tom is the new addition to the state Ranji squad announced by the Kerala Cricket Association at the completion of a short camp at the SD College ground, Alappuzha on Tuesday.
The promising fast bowler from Pathanamthitta was not part of the Ranji probables that was announced in December. But the postponement of the Ranji Trophy due to the Covid pandemic and brilliant performances in the U-19 Cooch Behar Trophy fast-tracked Tom’s progress to the state Ranji squad. The youngster was the top wicket-taker for Kerala in the tournament, grabbing 15 wickets.
Apart from Tom, there are three more newcomers to the state Ranji squad. The youngest double centurion in U-19 cricket for Kerala, Varun Nayanar from Kannur, has deservedly earned a call to the senior squad with his consistent run in junior-grade cricket. The wicket-keeper batsman from Kannur was also part of the Indian U-19 side that took on South Africa U-19 in 2019.
Consistent performers in the All-India U-25 inter-state tournament have been rewarded with southpaw Anand Krishnan (Malappuram) and pacer F Fanoos (Thiruvananthapuram) earning maiden call-ups to the state squad.
KCA has mentioned that dashing batsmen Sanju Samson is undergoing rehabilitation at NCA, Bengaluru. He is expected to join the Kerala squad in Rajkot after regaining full fitness but indications are that he is likely to miss their first game against Meghalaya on February 17.
As announced earlier, Sachin Baby will be leading the Kerala side this season while wicketkeeper-batsman Vishnu Vinod will be his deputy. The tournament will also see former India speedster S Sreesanth’s return to red-ball cricket after a nine-year hiatus.
Meanwhile, the KCA will host the Ranji Trophy Elite E division matches at multiple venues in Thiruvananthapuram. Andhra Pradesh, Rajasthan, Services and Uttarakhand will be the teams featuring in the matches to played in the state capital.
Kerala squad: Sachin Baby (captain), Vishnu Vinod (vice-captain,wicketkeeper), Anand Krishnan, Rohan Kunnummal, Vatsal Govind, Rahul P, Salman Nizar, Jalaj Saxena, Sijomon Joseph, Akshay KC, Mithun S, Basil NP, Nideesh MD, Manu Krishnan, Basil Thampi, Fanoos F, S Sreesanth, Varun Nayanar (wicketkeeper), Vinoop Manoharan, Eden Apple Tom.
Support staff: Tinu Yohannan (head coach), Mazar Moidu (coach), Unnikrishnan (physio), Saji Somasundaram (video analyst), Vysakh Krishna (trainer).
Kerala’s fixtures: vs Meghalaya (Feb 17- 20), vs Gujarat (Feb 24-27), vs Madhya Pradesh (March 3-6)
The promising fast bowler from Pathanamthitta was not part of the Ranji probables that was announced in December. But the postponement of the Ranji Trophy due to the Covid pandemic and brilliant performances in the U-19 Cooch Behar Trophy fast-tracked Tom’s progress to the state Ranji squad. The youngster was the top wicket-taker for Kerala in the tournament, grabbing 15 wickets.
Apart from Tom, there are three more newcomers to the state Ranji squad. The youngest double centurion in U-19 cricket for Kerala, Varun Nayanar from Kannur, has deservedly earned a call to the senior squad with his consistent run in junior-grade cricket. The wicket-keeper batsman from Kannur was also part of the Indian U-19 side that took on South Africa U-19 in 2019.
Consistent performers in the All-India U-25 inter-state tournament have been rewarded with southpaw Anand Krishnan (Malappuram) and pacer F Fanoos (Thiruvananthapuram) earning maiden call-ups to the state squad.
KCA has mentioned that dashing batsmen Sanju Samson is undergoing rehabilitation at NCA, Bengaluru. He is expected to join the Kerala squad in Rajkot after regaining full fitness but indications are that he is likely to miss their first game against Meghalaya on February 17.
As announced earlier, Sachin Baby will be leading the Kerala side this season while wicketkeeper-batsman Vishnu Vinod will be his deputy. The tournament will also see former India speedster S Sreesanth’s return to red-ball cricket after a nine-year hiatus.
Meanwhile, the KCA will host the Ranji Trophy Elite E division matches at multiple venues in Thiruvananthapuram. Andhra Pradesh, Rajasthan, Services and Uttarakhand will be the teams featuring in the matches to played in the state capital.
Kerala squad: Sachin Baby (captain), Vishnu Vinod (vice-captain,wicketkeeper), Anand Krishnan, Rohan Kunnummal, Vatsal Govind, Rahul P, Salman Nizar, Jalaj Saxena, Sijomon Joseph, Akshay KC, Mithun S, Basil NP, Nideesh MD, Manu Krishnan, Basil Thampi, Fanoos F, S Sreesanth, Varun Nayanar (wicketkeeper), Vinoop Manoharan, Eden Apple Tom.
Support staff: Tinu Yohannan (head coach), Mazar Moidu (coach), Unnikrishnan (physio), Saji Somasundaram (video analyst), Vysakh Krishna (trainer).
Kerala’s fixtures: vs Meghalaya (Feb 17- 20), vs Gujarat (Feb 24-27), vs Madhya Pradesh (March 3-6)