Star batter Sarthak Ranjan dazzled at Eden Gardens on Friday during Kolkata Knight Riders’ (KKR) intra-squad match ahead of the upcoming season of the Indian Premier League (IPL). Sarthak, who is the son of politician Pappu Yadav, slammed a quickfire 37 off 16 balls for the Rinku Singh-led Golden Knights against the Purple Knights, led by KKR captain Ajinkya Rahane. He hit five fours and two sixes, striking at nearly 240 before being caught at third man off Blessing Muzarabani.
Sarthak Ranjan is off and running
Head to the X LIVE to watch our Intra-Squad game
— KolkataKnightRiders (@KKRiders) March 20, 2026
The 29-year-old slammed 20 runs off the third over, which was bowled by pacer Vaibhav Arora.
All S̷t̷a̷r̷s̷ Knights game pic.twitter.com/wtbFVWolKw
— KolkataKnightRiders (@KKRiders) March 20, 2026
The 29-year-old was roped in by the franchise at his base price of Rs 30 lakh during the IPL 2026 mini auction in November last year.
However, Sarthak’s journey to the IPL wasn’t overnight. He had impressed in domestic circuits and the Delhi Premier League, showcasing his potential with consistent batting performances that put him on the radar of selectors and fans alike. His selection symbolizes the pathway for talented domestic players striving to break into top-tier cricket.
The emotional high point came when Pappu Yadav took to X to congratulate his son, writing, “Badhai betu, jamkar khelo, apne pratibha ke dum par apni pehchan banao… ab Sarthak ke naam se banegi hamari pehchan!” – encouraging him to play with passion and build his identity through talent on the big stage.
Kolkata Knight Riders full squad for IPL 2026: Ajinkya Rahane, Angkrish Raghuvanshi, Anukul Roy, Harshit Rana, Manish Pandey, Ramandeep Singh, Rinku Singh, Rovman Powell, Sunil Narine, Umran Malik, Vaibhav Arora, Varun Chakaravarthy, Cameron Green, Finn Allen, Matheesha Pathirana, Tejasvi Singh, Kartik Tyagi, Prashant Solanki, Rahul Tripathi, Tim Seifert, Sarthak Ranjan, Daksh Kamra, Rachin Ravindra, Akash Deep.
(With Agency Inputs)
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