Ranji Trophy 2025-26: Self-belief gives Andhra a spring in its step
After five rounds of the Ranji Trophy season, Andhra sits second on the Group A table with 22 points, three behind leader and domestic heavyweight Vidarbha. Overall, only two other teams, Bengal (23) and Mumbai (24), have bagged more points so far.
Two thumping wins against Odisha and Jharkhand aside, a famous four-wicket triumph over Tamil Nadu remains one of the highlights of the campaign.
Andhra’s run has had contributions from wise, old heads and young, enthusiastic minds in equal measure. Twenty-one-year-old Shaik Rasheed (440 runs, two centuries, two fifties), 31-year-old Abhishek Reddy (447, 1, 2), and 32-year-old K.S. Bharat (311, 1, 2) have led the charge with the willow.
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With the ball, 32-year-old Saurabh Kumar is at the forefront with 23 wickets. He has been ably supported by 24-year-old Tripurana Vijay (14) and 25-year-old Kavuri Saiteja (11).
Statistically, nothing screams ‘difference’ in the way Andhra has gone about its business. What does is a fresh, nagging persistence to grind its way out of a rut. This is something the team unanimously credits new coach Gary Stead with.
“The atmosphere he has created, his style and approach towards the game, have all been great. Even if things are not going well, he makes sure that we stay positive,” Andhra skipper Ricky Bhui told Sportstar.
Unlike the myopic selection and blind purple patch pursuits Andhra has often been guilty of before, a major change now is backing players even if their returns stutter here and there in a campaign.
A number of players speak about the value of being seen by the coach.
“Usually, the team is picked, and then we have a 10-day camp. This time, we had about 30 members in the pre-season camp. Gary wanted to see all the boys. He wanted to know the style of cricket we play and stuff like that. It was a good 20-day camp, everyone was put through training sessions which had a good intensity.”
Players also went into that camp and the season thereafter knowing that the past would neither weigh them down nor propel them into the squad this season.
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An open communication channel has been the key towards that end, with players encouraged to approach Stead and the staff for one-on-one conversations at any point.
“Even if the opposition has the upper hand, the coach gives us clarity on everything and tells us what to do. Even if the team is not doing well, we now have confidence that we’ll come back eventually,” K.V. Sasikanth chimed in.
“Players in all departments have a lot of clarity on their roles now. That was not the case earlier when there was quite a bit of confusion,” he added.
“He asked us to keep small goals, forget about the future, and focus on finding solutions in the present. That has also made our lives easier,” Sasikanth said.
Two diametrically opposite fixtures await Andhra – against Vidarbha and Nagaland (currently at the bottom of the table) – and the side is cautiously optimistic.
“I honestly feel that we’ll do something really special this year, going by the way this team has been doing. The goal is to finish in the first position on the table. After that, we will take it each game at a time, build on our strengths and see where we go,” Ricky added.
Published on Nov 21, 2025
