Vidarbha Kicks Off Ranji Trophy 2025-26 Title Defense Against Andhra Following VHT Victory

After nearly two months focused on limited-overs cricket, domestic cricket is set to return to the longer format with Vidarbha, the Vijay Hazare Trophy’s latest victor, taking on Andhra in a Ranji Trophy Group A match at the Anantapur Cricket Ground starting Thursday.

Mirroring their recent success in the 50-over format, Vidarbha leads its group with the highest overall points, amassing 25 points from five rounds of red-ball cricket this season. Andhra is close behind with 22 points. While there’s a three-point difference, both teams boast three wins and two draws.

Historically, the two teams have been evenly matched. Out of four Ranji Trophy clashes between Vidarbha and Andhra, three have resulted in draws, with Vidarbha securing the sole outright victory during their last encounter—a home win in Nagpur in 2024.

The defending champion has remained largely unchanged, consistently performing across formats with contributions from various players.

READ | Atharva Taide’s century powers Vidarbha to their first Vijay Hazare Trophy triumph

Harsh Dubey has enjoyed an outstanding year and a half, claiming 98 First-Class wickets with his left-arm spin for Vidarbha, India A, and the Central Zone since the 2024-25 season began. With regular captain Akshay Wadkar sidelined by injury, Dubey, who recently led his team to a maiden 50-over title, now takes on the captaincy role in red-ball cricket as well.

The batting lineup is impressive, featuring the in-form Yash Rathod, Aman Mokhade, Atharva Taide, and Dhruv Shorey. Seamer Nachiket Bhute and spinner Parth Rekhade have each taken 22 wickets in five rounds. Additionally, Darshan Nalkande’s exceptional recent performances in white-ball cricket suggest he could transition that success to the four-day format.

Andhra has also operated as a well-knit unit. Instead of relying on standout individual performances, the team has succeeded through timely contributions. Shaikh Rasheed and Abhishek Reddy lead the batting with 440 and 447 runs, respectively. KS Bharat has added 311 runs. However, captain Ricky Bhui has had a challenging start to the season, managing just 33 runs in six innings. On the bowling front, left-arm spinner Saurabh Kumar has excelled with 23 wickets.

India regular Nitish Kumar Reddy is expected to be available for his state team in at least one of the remaining two rounds. However, it remains uncertain if he will participate just three days after finishing the ODI series against New Zealand.

Having secured consecutive wins against Odisha, Tamil Nadu, and Jharkhand, Andhra’s strong form in the longer format could propel them to the quarterfinals, a stage they missed last season.

Published on Jan 21, 2026