After Virat Kohli and KL Rahul, another Champions Trophy-bound India star set to make Ranji Trophy return

After Virat Kohli and KL Rahul, another Champions Trophy-bound India star set to make Ranji Trophy return
Team India in frame

Highlights:

Virat Kohli and KL Rahul will make Ranji Trophy return.

Kuldeep Yadav is another star that will be returning to Ranji.

He is a part of India's Champions Trophy 2025 squad.

Star Indian spinner Kuldeep Yadav has been selected for Uttar Pradesh's team for their match against Madhya Pradesh in Indore, which begins on Thursday, making him the most recent Champions Trophy-bound India player to participate in the Ranji Trophy. After undergoing hernia surgery in October, Kuldeep is going to return to competitive cricket for the first time. The first Test match against New Zealand in Bengaluru was the spinner's final competitive encounter. He has been included in the Indian team for the 2025 Champions Trophy and the forthcoming three-match ODI series against England.

Kuldeep Yadav ready for return

In an earlier statement, Kuldeep thanked the National Cricket Academy (NCA) team for helping him finish his recuperation. "Recovery takes a team. Grateful to the NCA and its team for all the work behind the scenes!".

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After the BCCI declared that the 30-year-old spinner would not be available for India's five-match Test series in Australia, he had to undergo surgery from a specialist in Germany. As a result, he missed a large portion of India's relatively dismal 2024–25 Test season, which saw them lose 3-0 at home to New Zealand and then 3-1 to Australia, and they missed out on their first-ever World Test Championship final.

Kuldeep will have plenty of playing time before the important international assignments. Still, the encounter between UP and MP is essentially a dead rubber as neither team is in the running for the knockout stages. Additionally, Kuldeep's return coincides with several regular players from India participating in the Ranji Trophy. Among the well-known star players who will play alongside Kuldeep for their respective teams in this round are Virat Kohli and KL Rahul.

After leading the Indian spin attack in the 2023 ODI World Cup run to the final and India's historic triumph in the 2024 T20 World Cup to end the ICC trophy drought, Kuldeep has been a crucial component of India's recent white-ball successes. In the UAE, where the conditions might be favourable for him, Indian supporters will be hoping the team can once again rely on his abilities.