Abhinav Tejrana couldn’t consider his luck. The Goan batter had seemed unhurried towards a probing new-ball spell from Kerala pacers Nidheesh MD and Basil NP on the ultimate day of a Ranji Trophy match in Porvorim on Sunday.
This was till Tejrana middled an innocuous size ball from Nidheesh proper into the palms of the short-leg fielder. The left-handed batter, weighed down by disappointment, trudged again to his dugout, with simply 18 runs to his credit score from the match (one and 17).
Regardless of the unceremonious finish, Tejrana completed the 2025-26 Ranji Trophy group stage with 788 runs, the third most for any batter this season.
All of those, regardless of this being his debut outing on the highest stage of Indian home cricket. It didn’t take too lengthy for Tejrana to determine himself as Goa’s batting mainstay.
The 25-year-old’s cricketing journey, although, didn’t start within the laid-back coasts of Goa, however somewhat from the hustle and bustle of the Delhi cricket circuit.
After working his approach via Delhi’s age-group cricket, Tejrana struggled to make the minimize on the under-23 stage, pushing him tantalisingly near quitting the game.
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“It’s at all times a bit powerful when you’re not taking part in within the rising ages. Everyone asks you questions like, why aren’t you on the market and taking part in? Within the rising years, I feel it is extremely vital so that you can play,” confesses Tejrana.
Nudged on by his father, Anil Kumar, Tejrana determined to shift base to Goa in 2022 to play membership cricket and discover his footing within the coastal State. The choice, although, wasn’t fully sport-driven.
“There have been two elements at play. We now have a small visitor home in Calangute. So, I needed to handle that too,” says Tejrana.
With a backup plan in place, he dove deep into the Goan cricket scene, turning out for golf equipment like Dempo, whereas additionally raking in runs aplenty within the Goa Premier League.
Tejrana has already chalked out plans to fine-tune his white-ball batting after going unsold within the IPL 2026 public sale.
| Picture Credit score:
B. JOTHI RAMALINGAM
Tejrana has already chalked out plans to fine-tune his white-ball batting after going unsold within the IPL 2026 public sale.
| Picture Credit score:
B. JOTHI RAMALINGAM
He was quickly picked for Goa’s under-23 facet, after which was promptly drafted into the Ranji setup in 2024-25, however needed to bide his time within the wings for the complete season.
The endurance ultimately paid dividends this season, as Tejrana earned nationwide recognition along with his batting prowess. The No.3 batter started by scoring a double hundred in his debut match towards Chandigarh in October, and adopted it up with tons towards Punjab, Saurashtra and Maharashtra.
Tejrana cites the amount of cricket he has performed over the previous couple of years on the membership stage as the inspiration of his fast rise on the senior stage.
“I simply play matches throughout. I attempt to play as many as potential. In order that was the aim — to journey round in several states and play matches. I’ve performed all throughout North India. That gave me a number of confidence.”
“I additionally had a number of spare time, as a result of I wasn’t taking part in skilled cricket. In order that gave me the area and time to work on myself and follow onerous. In order that was helpful for me,” he added.
Along with his Ranji Trophy exploits, Tejrana additionally made his Record A and T20 debuts this season. He scored 100 within the Vijay Hazare Trophy towards Mumbai and tallied two fifties within the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy.
However, the Delhi-born batter did not discover a group within the IPL 2026 public sale, regardless of attending trials with RCB, Mumbai Indians and Rajasthan Royals.
Tejrana has already chalked out plans to fine-tune his white-ball batting to spice up his prospects within the shorter codecs.
“I love to do open nets for six-hitting follow. Vary hitting is admittedly vital. Most gamers do this. And I attempt to do a number of fundamental drills and plastic ball drills. I’ve so much to be taught. I’ve a number of issues on my thoughts relating to my preparation. I feel I’ll come again significantly better subsequent 12 months in white-ball cricket,” says Tejrana.
Having lastly tasted success after an extended, circuitous journey, Tejrana intends to proceed with Goa.
“I need to keep on with Goa. They’ve positioned a number of religion in me, giving me the chance to play First-Class cricket. I’m very grateful that the Goa Cricket Affiliation has given me this opportunity,” added Tejrana.
Printed on Feb 02, 2026