By Admin 
Kerala will be looking to close out the opening leg of its Ranji Trophy 2025-26 campaign on an upbeat note, but it faces a tough challenge in Madhya Pradesh, brimming with confidence, as it visits the Holkar Stadium here for an Elite Group-B match beginning on Sunday.
MP sits atop Group B, and comes into this clash fresh off a thrilling three-wicket victory over Goa despite ceding a first-innings lead of over 100. All-rounder Saransh Jain was the star of that encounter, seeing his side home with an unbeaten 82 to complement a first-innings 48 and six wickets to boot.
MP goes into this match with a settled squad — with different batters putting their hand up on different occasions despite the absences of Rajat Patidar and Venkatesh Iyer, both of whom will miss this match as well.
Kerala, meanwhile, is second from bottom in the group. It found itself staring at defeat again on the final day of its last match against Saurashtra, but will take heart in the way that Varun Nayanar and Abhishek P. Nair batted it to safety (albeit with some fortune), as well as M.D. Nidheesh’s opening spell that helped it secure a first-innings lead.
It has added a few new faces to its squad ahead of this encounter, with Abiijith Praveen and Abhishek Nair among those who could make Ranji Trophy debuts, while Vaishak Chandran could also be in line for a return.
The two matches in Indore this season have both ended in draws, with the wicket being fairly conducive to run-scoring. MP batters will be looking to pile on the runs again, while Kerala will hope that it is an ideal surface for its young batters to build on some of the promise they showed in the last match.