Ranji Trophy 2024-25: Mumbai’s Himanshu Singh rises to the occasion, fills Tanush Kotian’s shoes against Tripura

Himanshu stitched two fifty-plus partnerships for the seventh and eighth wicket with Shams Mulani and Shardul Thakur en route to a maiden half-century.

Himanshu Singh received his senior Mumbai cap in Mumbai’s Ranji Trophy campaign opener against Baroda earlier this month. | Photo Credit: DHRUVA PRASAD

The hallmark of a champion team is that it doesn’t rely on a single set of clutch players. Thus, when 42-time Ranji Trophy champion Mumbai was without four of its star players against Tripura, it needed another quartet to rise to the occasion.

Amongst them was 21-year-old Himanshu Singh, playing just his second First-Class game, who was expected to fill in the shoes of the lanky all-rounder Tanush Kotian – on India A duty in Australia.

Himanshu, six feet four inches tall, not only matched Kotian in frame but also in substance, stitching two fifty-plus partnerships for the seventh and eighth wicket with Shams Mulani and Shardul Thakur en route to a maiden half-century.

“I am trying to fill the shoes of Tanush Kotian, who has performed so well for Mumbai,” Himanshu, who prefers to be referred to as a bowling all-rounder, told Sportstar after the second day’s play here.

Mulani, who has staged many a rearguard with Kotian lower down the order, had said after Mumbai’s win over Maharashtra in the previous league game that he would miss his spin-bowling partner more for his batting than his bowling.

However, Himanshu’s gritty 157-ball 59 didn’t allow Mulani to feel the pinch as the duo put on 61 runs for the seventh wicket.

“I wanted to play with Shams Mulani since my Under-19 and Under-23 days. He has performed very well for Mumbai in the Ranji Trophy, and I am trying to learn as much as I can from him,” Himanshu said.

A defining feature of Himanshu’s batting was the effective use of his height as he shuffled outside his crease repeatedly to negate any hint of movement in the air and off the pitch. He also employed this technique to ride out a tricky phase against the second new ball.

“As a batsman, my height is both an advantage and a disadvantage. The ball was keeping low. Shams Mulani and Shardul Thakur were guiding me about which ball the bowler was going to bowl. Even during practice, I shuffle outside my crease to throw the bowler off his length,” he explained.

Himanshu not only impressed with the bat but also provided Mumbai with a much-needed breakthrough at a time when Tripura’s openers Bikram Kumar Das and Jiwanjot Singh were putting together an ominous stand.

Operating from around the wicket to Das, Himanshu breached the left-hander’s defensive forward press with a hint of dip and turn.

The off-spinner had been called up to assist the Indian team ahead of its Test against Bangladesh in Chennai last month as his bowling action bears an uncanny resemblance to that of senior pro Ravichandran Ashwin.

Himanshu said he had adopted the action when he was around 12 years old.

“I developed this action in my childhood. I used to like batting a lot, and as a part-time bowler, I would copy anybody’s action. I particularly liked Ashwin’s action, and I bowled well also with it, so I adopted it,” he said.

Speaking about his experience during his stint at the India nets, Himanshu said he learnt a lot from Ashwin, both about batting and bowling, and also enjoyed bowling to the likes of Virat Kohli, Shubman Gill and Rohit Sharma.

Himanshu has made a name for himself in Mumbai’s cricketing circles with his standout performances in age-group cricket. He had picked 38 wickets in eight games in Mumbai’s run to the semifinal during the 2023-24 Under-23 Col. CK Nayudu and scalped 13 in the win over Railways in the quarterfinal.

He received his senior Mumbai cap in Mumbai’s Ranji Trophy campaign opener against Baroda earlier this month and nabbed three wickets in an 84-run defeat. He didn’t get much of an opportunity with the bat as he was slotted at No. 11 in both innings.

However, he stepped into the breach as an all-rounder when the team needed him, and, as he aspires to make a seamless transition to the senior level, he has his skipper Ajinkya Rahane’s backing.

“Ajinkya bhaiya has told me not to take pressure. Bat and bowl the way you have been doing from your age-group cricket days.”