Kumar Kushagra, a 21-year-old wicketkeeper-batsman from Jharkhand, is making headlines these days. Gujarat Titans have expressed full confidence in him and retained him ahead of the IPL mini-auction in Abu Dhabi on December 16th. After scoring a double century against Baroda in the Ranji Trophy last month, Kumar has also been on fire in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy.
Jharkhand won the match
Jharkhand defeated Punjab by 6 wickets in a match played at the Ambli Stadium in Pune on Friday. Punjab, batting first, scored 235 runs, but Nakumar Kushagra smashed 86 runs off just 42 balls to power Jharkhand to victory in just 18.1 overs. This was the highest successful run chase in the history of the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. SMAT’s biggest run chase
Kumar hit eight fours and four towering sixes in his innings. Captain Ishan Kishan played a quickfire 47 off 23 balls but was dismissed. Kumar then added 66 runs with Anukul Roy (37 off 17 balls) and 71 runs in just 30 balls with No. 6 Pankaj Kumar (39 off 18 balls, four sixes) to close out the match. Kumar himself remained unbeaten. Punjab’s Salil Arora played a blistering 125 off 45 balls, but no other batsman could even reach 30. Still, his 235 runs proved insufficient.Kumar Kushagra is performing exceptionally well in this tournament. He has scored 316 runs in seven matches at a strike rate of 156, including three half-centuries.
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Jharkhand has won all eight of its matches so far, a decision Kumar has played a significant role in. Kumar has previously made headlines. He made it to the Indian team for the 2022 Under-19 World Cup (though they lost in the final). He surprised everyone with his 266-run innings against Nagaland in the 2021-22 Ranji Trophy.
In the 2024 IPL auction, Delhi Capitals bought him for ₹7.20 crore, a significant sum at the time. He didn’t get many opportunities last season, but this time he was acquired by Gujarat Titans and has now been retained.