Nitish Rana likely to represent Delhi again in domestic cricket after two seasons with U.P
New Delhi: Two years after moving to Uttar Pradesh, ahead of the 2023/24 domestic season, left-handed batter Nitish Rana is likely to represent his home state Delhi again in the upcoming 2025/26 season.
Rana had captained Delhi in domestic cricket games before making the move to Uttar Pradesh in 2023.
IANS understands that Rana likely making a move back to Delhi emerged after his name was not spotted in the list of players for the auction ahead of the upcoming season of the UP T20 League. 'Yes, Nitish Rana has applied for NOC and approval for it will be given in the coming days.'
'With him not being a domicile player, he would look at deciding on this things season wise as a guest player. As per the norms, we also have to confirm with guest players for their availability from season to season. So they have the flexibility to move around,' said sources in the Uttar Pradesh Cricket Association (UPCA) to IANS on Wednesday.
Rana had a forgettable time playing for Uttar Pradesh in the 2024/25 domestic season – making only 111 runs in nine games of the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. He made only 17 runs in two Vijay Hazare Trophy games, before being omitted from the team. The situation wasn't that great in Ranji Trophy too – amassing 150 runs in four games, before being left out of the team.
Interestingly, Rana's likely return to the Delhi set-up comes just weeks before the second season of Delhi Premier League (DPL) takes place. Though there's been no confirmation from the Delhi and District Cricket Association (DDCA) on Rana coming back to Delhi, there's a school of thought which hasn't been much optimistic about this development.
'Two years back, he left Delhi when the side needed him and requests were made at that time. Now that you are not being picked for the Uttar Pradesh side, you come back to Delhi again. The thinking should be that he would have to earn his spot in Delhi team again,' said a source to IANS.
Rana, who played one ODI and two T20Is for India, had a disappointing IPL 2025 season with the Rajasthan Royals, scoring only 217 runs in 11 matches, before being ruled out of the competition due to a calf injury. Notably, during last year's Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy quarter-finals, Rana had a heated argument with Delhi captain Ayush Badoni, which required for the on field umpires' to intervene and separate the duo.
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