Anuj Rawat

His first-class career opened against Assam, and he made an immediate impression by scoring 71 in his first innings at that level. The selectors responded quickly: for the second innings of the same match, he was moved up the order to open the batting.

Rawat's game is built around the top of the order, where he prefers to take on the bowling rather than play himself in slowly. His first Indian Premier League opportunity came with Rajasthan Royals, who signed him in 2020. Chances there were almost nonexistent, and across two seasons with the franchise he faced only a single ball.

A solid run in white-ball domestic competitions put him back in the auction spotlight, and in 2022 Royal Challengers Bangalore secured his services for Rs. 3.4 crore. He stayed with that side for three seasons and was shuffled between several batting slots during that time. The returns were modest: one half-century and a handful of brief, lively innings, which reflected the inconsistency that has so far held back a player with obvious attacking intent.