The youngster was named the Man of the Tournament in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2025.
“It has been a very good journey. I concentrated on my batting. I was bowling well but this year I wanted to contribute with the bat as well”, said a content Anukul Roy after clinching the Man of the Tournament award in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2025.
Ask the importance of an all-rounder to a team like the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), who had to part ways with two of their finest all-rounders ahead of the 19th edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL). Andre Russell and Venkatesh Iyer were both a part of the released players list ahead of the mini-auction – a move which also ensured a purse in excess of INR 60 Crores for the three-time IPL champions.
That being said, the Ajinkya Rahane-led franchise had one of the best IPL auctions in Abu Dhabi on December 16. They managed to fill almost all of their loopholes ahead of the upcoming season. However, one of their trump cards for the 19th IPL edition could be one of their retentions – despite splurging big money on players like Cameron Green in the mini-auction in Abu Dhabi.
Anukul Roy, the all-rounder from Jharkhand has been amongst their ranks for the past four years. Though his performances have not been over the roof in either of the years, the fact that the franchise chose to retain him each time shows that they see something in the youngster. Well, Anukul has shown the management what he is capable of, with prolific performances in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2025.
The Ishan Kishan-led Jharkhand won the tournament at the MCA stadium in Pune, beating Haryana handsomely by a margin of 69 runs. The 27-year-old all-rounder was pretty much at the centre of it all, contributing with both bat and ball. His unbeaten 40 in the Final helped the team get past the 250-run mark, leaving the Haryana players dazed with a mountain of runs.
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The three-time IPL champions have actually built a wonderful squad, with a lot of depth in each department. They have plenty of options to bank on in the top-order, making them a potent side for the 19th IPL edition. Head coach Abhishek Nayar has confirmed that Cameron Green will be batting in the top three for the franchise.
That being said, there is plenty of room to play with the top five. Rinku Singh and Rovman Powell are expected to be finishers, with Ramandeep Singh and Anukul Roy being options for the lower-order. The bowling aspects are quite clear, with Sunil Narine and Varun Chakravarthy walking into the XI as spinners. Moreover, Matheesha Pathirana and Harshit Rana would be the two speedsters to start with.
However, Anukul Roy can be given the nod ahead of someone like Ramandeep Singh. The latter has registered a strike-rate of 134.25 in the last season, as compared to Anukul’s 160.32 in the T20 domestic tournament. Though the difference in quality of bowling can be a debatable aspect, there’s no lack of quality in the all-rounder from Jharkhand.
To add to that, Anukul Roy is an exceptional fielder, a quality which matches with Ramandeep Singh – both are a live wire in the field. But another thing which shifts the needle towards Anukul would be his spin-bowling prowess. The left-arm orthodox spinner has scalped 18 wickets in 11 matches in the SMAT 2025 season, and would be itching to replicate the same for the Knights.
Ajinkya Rahane (capt.), Angkrish Raghuvanshi, Cameron Green, Rinku Singh, Tejasvi Dahiya (wk), Rovman Powell, Anukul Roy, Sunil Narine, Matheesha Pathirana, Harshit Rana, Varun Chakravarthy.
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