C Hari Nishaanth

The Ooty-born left-handed batsman C Hari Nishaanth grew up playing domestic cricket for Tamil Nadu.

The batter, who idolises former India captain MS Dhoni, made his T20 debut in the 2018-19 Syed Mushtaq Ali trophy against Rajasthan on February 21, 2019. However he was dismissed for just 6 runs.

His first few years in domestic cricket were quite forgettable. The classy left-hander made his List A debut in the 2019-20 Vijay Hazare trophy against Rajasthan on September 24, 2019.

The star of the Dindigul Dragons, Reddy’s major role in his T20 success was playing TNPL alongside T Natarajan and Varun Chakravarthy, who excelled in the league before making IPL debuts. Hari Nishaanth was the fourth-highest run-getter in the TNPL 2019 edition which gave a boost to the Tamil Nadu side before the Syed Ali Mushtaq Trophy.

Hari Nishaanth kicked off the 2020-21 Syed Mushtaq Ali trophy with scores of 92 and 47 not out and played a crucial 35-run knock in the final on a rank turner in Ahmedabad. Tamil Nadu clinched the title and Hari Nishaanth certainly the stand-out performer. His amazing success paved a path to the 2021 IPL auctions where he was snapped by the IPL giants CSK for a base price of INR 20 lakhs.

The road to the IPL hasn’t been straightforward for Hari Nishaanth but he backed up his determination and skills to improve his batting and with the help of coach AG Guruswammy, he truly unlocked his potential. Nishaanth’s path to the national team won’t be easy at any cost but he has been putting in the hard yards and training scrupulously to fulfill his dream of playing for India.

(As of March 2021)