Yash Dhull, India’s Under-19 World Cup-winning captain, began his first-class career with a flourish, smashing a double century in his Ranji Trophy debut. On the opening day of the Ranji Trophy encounter against Tamil Nadu, Dhull struck a superb century for Delhi. He followed it up with another century in the second innings on the last day of the contest.
Dhull, who has had a fantastic start to his first-class career, has joined a select group of players who have hit hundreds in both innings in their maiden Ranji game. Nari Contractor (152 and 102* for Gujarat in 1952/53 season) and Virag Awate (126 and 112 for Maharashtra in 2012/13) had done it before the 19-year-old.
After receiving accolades from all around the world, Dhull earned particular recognition from Delhi coach Raj Kumar Sharma, who was Virat Kohli’s childhood coach.
“In terms of the game, he is ready for the next level (India). I’d like to move him along quickly. He will only improve as he spends time with older players in the India system.” Yash has proven that he can dominate in white-ball cricket while still having the game to do well in the lengthier format. It was a dream come true for him. We were under pressure from the start, and the manner in which he overpowered the likes of Sandeep Warrier was impressive. Tamil Nadu put us under a lot of duress, but his character held out.
While it is difficult to assess Raj Kumar’s point of view given how brilliant he is at spotting potential as the man who gifted Indian cricket with Virat Kohli, a few fans believed it was too soon to push Dhull into international cricket.
Dhull, like Virat, made his first-class debut against Tamil Nadu after winning the Under-19 World Cup. After such a strong start to his senior career, we hope he can emulate former India captain Virat Kohli’s success.
