Is it safe to say that we are witnessing a peak in Riyan Parag’s domestic career? The 22 year old had a standout 2023 in T20 cricket and his rich vein of form is now translating into red ball cricket as well.
But before we get into his exploits, let us learn a bit about his background, upbringing and early cricketing talent.
Riyan Parag’s cricketing journey is rooted in a sports-centric family; his father, Parag Das, represented Assam in Ranji Trophy cricket, while his mother, Mithu Baruah, excelled in swimming.
Choosing cricket eventually, he debuted for Assam in Twenty20 cricket aged just 16! He played a pivotal role in India’s 2018 Under-19 World Cup victory and showed red-ball prowess at 15 against England.
His early success led to an IPL contract with the Rajasthan Royals, where he eventually became the youngest player to score an IPL fifty at 17 and has been with the franchise ever since!
Riyan Parag’s domestic career
Riyan represents Assam in domestic cricket and has been with the side for over 6 years now.
It is often tough to still digest the fact that he’s all of 22! Not only has been a more than handy bat, but has also consistently contributed with his wicked leg and off breaks.
Add to that, he’s also a bit of a livewire on the field. You’ll often see him in fielding hotspots even at the IPL!
The recently concluded Syed Mushtaq Ali season proved to be a breakthrough one for Riyan. He scored a whopping 510 runs in just 10 innings, including 7 half centuries on the trot!
This is a T20 record! He also bowled some crucial spells and picked wickets throughout the tournament to lead Assam into the knockouts.
Assam is one of the weaker teams in the Indian domestic circuit and it makes it all the more special for Riyan Parag to be scoring big runs to help the team do well.
Red-hot form transitions into red ball too!
Besides his brilliant show in white ball cricket, Riyan Parag seems to have come off age in red ball cricket as well!
While the talent has always been there, we’ve only seen glimpses over the years. However, this year really seems to be the start of bigger things for the young Assam batter.
With the added responsibility of captaincy on his shoulders, Riyan started off the season with a bang, scoring a blistering century in Assam’s Ranji Trophy opener.
This in addition to the fact that no one else in the team is really scoring runs or sticking it out. Parag carried his form into the consequent second and third matches as well. He scored a century in the second match followed by a quickfire 75 in the third game.
He has also received heaps of praise from his teammates at Rajasthan Royals. Ravichandaran Ashwin in particular has defended and backed Riyan multiple times, showing trust in his abilities!
Readers May Also Like: Is Ravichandran Ashwin India’s Greatest Off Spinner Ever?
For his own good and also for the benefit of Assam & eventually India, we hope that he continues to plunder bowling attacks.
Riyan will want to maintain this level of consistency leading into the IPL 2024 & the future.
Add his bowling to the mix along with some proper guidance and India will have hopefully found a solid middle order bat who bowls a bit!
Pingback: How Dhoni's batting struggles ended his career - Cricket By JB