All-rounder Riyan Parag is set to return to action for the Assam cricket team in the seventh round of the Ranji Trophy 2024-25 season, starting on Thursday.
Parag, who has been declared fit to return to the field, is in line to lead Assam in their last league fixture against hosts Saurashtra in Rajkot.
Part of the Rajasthan Royals squad for the Indian Premier League 2025, the 23-year-old was last seen in action in Indian colours during the final T20 of a three-match series against Bangladesh in October last year.
He was not considered for selection after the Bangladesh series due to a shoulder injury that required surgery.
An integral member of the Assam cricket team, Parag made his debut for the state in 2017 as a teenager and has gone on to become one of the mainstays in the side.
Parag, an U-19 World Cup winner with India, has consistently been one of the main stars for Assam and he scored 378 runs in six innings at an average of 75.60 and strike rate of 113.85 in the last Ranji Trophy season.
He smashed 20 sixes in the previous Ranji Trophy campaign - the most any player managed last season.
The 2023-24 Ranji Trophy also saw Parag make the second-fastest century in the tournament’s history. He scored a hundred off 56 balls against Chhattisgarh and finished having made 155 from 87 deliveries.
Apart from his exploits for Assam in the Ranji Trophy, Parag has also shone for his state in the Vijay Hazare Trophy and the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy on the domestic circuit in the past.
He scored the most runs for Assam in the 2022-23 Vijay Hazare Trophy, with 552 runs, and was the top scorer in the 2023-24 Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy with 510 runs at an average of 85 and strike rate of 182.79.
Parag’s return to the side will be a boost for Assam, who are currently at the bottom of the Elite Group D table with no wins, two losses and four draws.
With six points from as many games, Assam are out of contention for the knockout stage of the ongoing Ranji Trophy season.
Assam Ranji Trophy 2024-25 squad vs Saurashtra
Assam cricket team: Riyan Parag (captain), Denish Das (vice-captain), Mukhtar Hussain, Mrinmoy Dutta, Rahul Singh, Dipjyoti Saikia, Parvez Musaraf, Sumit Ghadigaonkar (wicket-keeper), Rishav Das, Anurag Talukdar (wicket-keeper), Avinav Choudhury, Sibsankar Roy, Akash Sengupta, Pradyun Saikia, Amlanjyoti Das
