Aryan Juyal

His rise began early. As a 16-year-old, he finished as the leading scorer in the Vinoo Mankad Trophy, the one-day zonal league, piling up 401 runs from 5 innings. His average in that competition was 133.67, and his tally featured 2 centuries and 3 half-centuries. Those returns earned him a place in India's squad for the 2018 Under-19 World Cup, a tournament India went on to win.

The step up to first-class cricket came with an early milestone: in 2019, only his second Ranji appearance, Juyal posted his first hundred at that level. He became a regular in the Uttar Pradesh line-up during the 2023-24 season, coming back from an ankle injury to finish as the state's top run-scorer. He gathered 577 runs at 64.11 that season, a haul that included a double hundred.

Shorter formats have also suited him. Having sat out the first season of the UP T20 League, he made an impact in the second edition with a blistering 104 from just 54 deliveries.

The 2024-25 season brought added responsibility, as he led Uttar Pradesh while Rinku Singh was unavailable. The captaincy did not weigh on his batting; he again headed the state's run charts, scoring 714 runs at 79.33 with 4 centuries and one fifty.