Karnataka have made some wholesome changes to their Ranji Trophy team for the second round of the Ranji Trophy season. Devdutt Padikkal, the Vijay Hazare Trophy hero, has been named the captain of the side, while Indian Test stars make a comeback.
The Indian players have started to prioritise domestic cricket to the core. This development took place when domestic cricket too started drawing the attention of the fans due to the international greats returning to play for their respective state teams.
The BCCI’s mandate on domestic cricket has forced Indian stars to feature in the Ranji Trophy, Vijay Hazare Trophy and the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy whenever they have time available amid their international duty.
Devdutt Padikkal named skipper for Ranji Trophy side
Karnataka, one of the most promising sides in the Ranji Trophy history, have been playing some flawless cricket domestically and have continued to do so in this edition as well. Moreover, the KSCA has given many gifted cricketers to the Indian team in the longrun.
In this season of the Ranji Trophy, Mayank Agarwal started as the captain of the Karnataka team, and the team that has been placed in the Elite Group B finished the first half of the tournament with 2 wins and 3 draws in the first six games this season.
They were placed third after Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh in the table. However, the KSCA has named a new captain mid-season. In-form batter Devdutt Padikkal, who had another dream run in the Vijay Hazare Trophy, has been named the skipper ahead of the clash against Punjab.
Wholesale changes in #Karnataka #RanjiTrophy team. Padikkal replaces Mayank as captain. KL Rahul comes back along with Prasidh. Abhinav dropped , Karun ruled out pic.twitter.com/W8IAMuXotS
— Manuja (@manujaveerappa) January 26, 2026
KL Rahul and Prasidh Krishna return to play for Karnataka
Indian batting stalwart KL Rahul has returned to the Ranji Trophy and will be part of the Karnataka Playing XI against Punjab in the upcoming Ranji Trophy fixture. The Indian wicket-keeper batter has dedicated himself to domestic cricket, especially red-ball cricket, whenever he is relieved from International duties.
Alongside the opener, pacer Prasidh Krishna has also been named in the 15-man squad named by the KSCA against Punjab for the next game in Mohali. Krishna last played a Test for India in the series-deciding 5th Test against England at the Oval.
Krishna has missed out on another Test starting XI, despite having picked 8 wickets in the last game and having played a monumental role in India’s astonishing comeback. He is not part of the ICC T20 World Cup squad for India and hence, has no matches scheduled till the IPL.
Karun Nair out, Abhinav Manohar dropped against Punjab
KSCA revealed their squad with many little surprises, but what seemed the most shocking was the release of Karun Nair. Reportedly, he has been ruled out by some injury, though the nature of which couldn’t be confirmed.
Karun Nair was Karnataka’s highest run-scorer this season with 614 runs in 6 matches and 8 innings for them. He scored runs at an average of 87.71, with two centuries and half-centuries to his name. He also amassed a double century for Karnataka this season.
Abhinav Manohar, the middle-order batsman who has been severely out of touch, has been dropped from the squad for their final group-stage game of the season. Devdutt Padikkal, however, had twin ducks in the last Ranji Trophy game he played.
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