Vishvarajsinh Jadeja

Vishvarajsinh Jadeja is an absolute run-churner playing for arguably India's strongest domestic side, Saurashtra.

He bats in the State’s top order, in a side that includes Test stars Cheteshwar Pujara, and current skipper, Jaydev Unadkat.

Jadeja has been a key performer in Saurashtra's victorious 2019/20 and 2022/23 Ranji Trophy campaigns. He struck 54 in the first Ranji final, contributing towards their monumental first-innings win, then hit scores of 25 and 10 not out as his side cruised to a 9-wicket win in the latter, both against Bengal.

The dashing right-hander has long been touted as a player of significant promise. He excelled through the Saurashtra age groups, then belted 97 on his first-class debut against Maharashtra (Dec 2018). Jadeja ended up striking 392 runs at 35.63 during his maiden 2018/19 Ranji campaign. He then backed up with a Ranji Trophy title the following season, before COVID struck.

Seeking opportunities to play, Jadeja headed to England in 2022 and played in the strong Liverpool Competition for Highfield. The Indian run machine announced his arrival with 3 centuries (130 v Lytham, 114 v Wavertree, 176* v Caldy) in his opening 5 matches of the season. Whilst he couldn’t continue his run spree, Jadeja still ended with 708 runs at 47.20 with represents an outstanding maiden UK stint.

Having enjoyed his first season, the Indian star returned to the UK in 2023 and continued to impress, this time for Wickersley Old Village in the Yorkshire Cricket Southern Premier League campaign. He was, without doubt, one of the best professionals in the League, scoring runs aplenty (923 runs at 65.93) with three hundreds and a highest score of 197*.

Given his exploits last summer, it's unsurprising to see Wickersley have re-signed their Indian star for a second Southern Premier League stint in 2024.