This time last year, Yash Rathod sat down with Vidarbha head coach Usman Ghani for an honest feedback, just like he had done so a year earlier. Those discussions are usually a review of the season and what he needs to work on going ahead. Having scored 490 runs in six matches as Vidarbha lost the final to Mumbai in the 2023/24 season, he was expecting a call-up for the Duleep Trophy.
“That’s when I got to know that the one century and three fifties I had scored were of no use. Sir told me, ‘Yash, if you want to make it big, you need to score big hundreds’.”
A year later, Rathod hit a fluent 194 against South Zone in the first innings, and subsequently took Central Zone to their first Duleep Trophy title since 2014/15 with a boundary at the BCCI’s Centre of Excellence (CoE) on Monday.
𝐂𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐥 𝐙𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐃𝐮𝐥𝐞𝐞𝐩 𝐓𝐫𝐨𝐩𝐡𝐲 𝐰𝐢𝐧𝐧𝐞𝐫𝐬! 🙌
Yash Rathod hits the winning runs and finishes it off in style as Central Zone beat South Zone by 6⃣ wickets👌
A fantastic victory 👏
Scorecard ▶️ https://t.co/unz0hJ66yE#DuleepTrophy | #Final… pic.twitter.com/dLcTLrCAz7
— BCCI Domestic (@BCCIdomestic) September 15, 2025
The big hundred Rathod scored, after South were dismissed for 149 in the first innings, was his sixth century since the aforementioned conversation with Ghani. After scoring 960 runs at an average of 53.33 – becoming the highest run-scorer in last season’s Ranji season – in Vidarbha’s victorious campaign, he has begun the new season on a resounding note.
After starting with an unbeaten 87 and 78 against North-East Zone, Rathod made only 2 against West Zone in the semi-finals, before ending the tournament with a Man of the Match award.
“After that conversation (with Ghani), I was very clear in my mind that if I crossed 60-70 runs and am set, I’ve to convert into a big one. After 50-60, sometimes as a batsman you feel you know everything about the conditions and the attack. But that’s the time you have to be more focused to ensure you score big. Now, once I cross 50, I’m more focused because ultimately it is the centuries that take you to the next level,” Rathod tells The Indian Express.
What makes his run-spree last Ranji season even more remarkable is that it was his first full campaign, as he played a key role in taking Vidarbha to its third title.
Central Zone batter Yash Rathod played a magnificent knock of 194 on the big stage 🔥
Watch 📽️ snippets of his innings 👌 🔽
Scorecard ▶️ https://t.co/unz0hJ66yE#DuleepTrophy | #Final | @IDFCFIRSTBank pic.twitter.com/cXyQ3dR9aF
— BCCI Domestic (@BCCIdomestic) September 13, 2025
“After the Ranji final, I’d a one-month break to take care of my back injury. But even then, the conversations were clear, because I knew I would be playing the Duleep Trophy. After playing some club cricket, I had a good week-long session with Hrishikesh (Kanitkar) bhai at the CoE. I’d hit the ground running a month back, so when the tournament started, I was prepared for the grind,” Rathod says.
For a player who isn’t part of the IPL glamour, being already part of BCCI’s targeted pool of players is vindication of Rathod’s capabilities. Though he bats at No. 5 – a position that needs batsmen to score heavily to convince selectors – he has shown tremendous application to rebuild as well as capitalize on starts provided by the top order.
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“It is a very tricky spot,” he admits. “You need to believe that you can build big partnerships at No. 5. I’ve a very good rapport with my captain Akshay Wadkar, who bats at No 6. Since we have done it repeatedly, there is a strong belief that I can make vital contributions. You get an opportunity to seal the game. As long as your foundations are strong, it doesn’t matter where you bat, you will find ways to score.”
Family support
The 25-year-old owes his strong foundation to his uncle Pawan Rathod, who has been coaching him for the last 18 years.
“It was my bade pappa’s unfulfilled dream. He couldn’t become a cricketer because my grandfather didn’t support his ambition. So he enrolled me into a coaching set-up. He would attend the sessions with me and observe the tutorials and then began coaching me himself. He is now coaching the women’s team in the Vidarbha state academy,” Rathod says.
But Pawan’s role is not restricted to just cricket. He ensured that Rathod’s cricket doesn’t come in the way of academics.
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The star of the day was undoubtedly Rathod, the highest run-getter in the previous Ranji Trophy season with 960 runs, who came into the final after squandering two golden chances against NorthEast Zone to notch hundreds. (PTI)
“During exams, he would wake me up at 4.30 am and conduct revisions. He wanted me to be good at studies as well. When cricket is there, all our focus is on the game. During exams, it is only studies. It always helps when you have a family that supports you on all fronts,” Rathod says.
With the Ranji season around the corner, Rathod has already begun his homework. As soon as the Ranji schedule was out, he figured the venues Vidarbha would be playing at and his preparation is built around it.
“This time we will be playing Tamil Nadu and Andhra away in the first leg, and the conditions will be vastly different. Since I play club cricket in Chennai, I have a fair idea of the conditions. Batting on different pitches isn’t easy. You need to prepare a lot and that’s what I’m doing. In Andhra, it won’t be turning, but will be on the slower side. Up north, we know seamers will be in play all day. These are minute factors, but ones that need to be taken care off,” says Rathod, who is now looking to break into Vidarbha’s T20 side.
“I want to be part of the IPL as well. I had a good Vijay Hazare Trophy last time. I can do well in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy too. I’m just waiting for the opportunity,” he adds.
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Brief scores: South Zone 149 & 426 lost to Central Zone 511 & 66/4.
