A hard-hitting middle-order batter, a handy off-spinner and an ace fielder, Riyan Parag has been representing Rajasthan Royals since 2019. Part of India's Under-19 World Cup-winning squad in 2018 and Assam’s top scorer in the 2018-19 Vijay Hazare Trophy, Riyan Parag first joined the Royals back in 2019 and made a mark in his debut IPL season. He scored a 49-ball 50 against Delhi Capitals in his maiden campaign. Just 17 years and 175 days old then, the knock made him the youngest player to score an IPL fifty at the time. In IPL 2022, he took 17 catches - the most by any non-wicketkeeper in the tournament. Son of former first-class cricketer Parag Das and national-level swimmer Mithoo Barooah, Parag hit a purple patch with the bat in 2024 and emerged as the highest run-scorer in the 2023-24 Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy with a tally of 510. Riyan Parag carried the form into the IPL 2024 season for the Royals and emerged as the team’s highest scorer and the third-highest overall with 573 runs at an average of over 50. What was even more impressive is the fact that he registered these numbers batting at No. 4. Rishabh Pant, with 547 runs for Delhi Capitals in 2018, previously held the record for most runs scored in a single IPL season while batting at the No. 4 position. The run of form was duly rewarded with international call-ups as he made his T20I and ODI debuts against Zimbabwe and Sri Lanka, respectively, in 2024. He is the first player from Northeast India and Assam to play for the Indian men’s cricket team.
