When we speak about all-rounders in Indian cricketone of the biggest names that comes to mind is that of Kapil Dev. 1983 World Cup winner did a great job with the bat and ball for nearly a decade and a half. Since then, India haven’t seen such a player come through the ranks who can be termed a real all-rounder.
One person who came close to filling Kapil’s big boots was Hardik Pandya when he made his India debut in 2016. A decade later, the 33-year-old is struggling with his future due to recurrent injury issues. Pandya showed promise in the Test format, but fitness issues ended his chances of playing red-ball cricket.
The current season of the Ranji Trophy has seen a youngster who can serve India across all formats. The 22-year-old Manvanth Kumar has been one of the standout performers for Karnataka in the ongoing season, which has seen the former champions climb to the top spot in Group B with 16 points from four games.
Making a statement with bat
Young Manvanth made his First Class debut at the start of the current season against Andhra in Vijaywada. The 22-year-old scored 57 runs but failed to pick up any wickets as the game ended in a draw.
His biggest moment came against Saurashtra, where he scored his maiden ton in dramatic circumstances. At one stage, Karnataka, playing at home, were reduced to 194/8 in the first innings. THE Southpaw found great support from Abhilash Shetty (14 off 137 balls) as the pair added 146 runs for the ninth wicket.
Walked in at 194/8. Walked out with an incredible 1️⃣3️⃣5️⃣
🎥 Relive 22-year-old Manvanth Kumar’s maiden FC ton in just his second game 👏
Updates ▶️ https://t.co/6BeWjtc1gQ#RanjiTrophy | @mflone_pic.twitter.com/3J4Qaa0P5R
— BCCI Domestic (@BCCIdomestic) October 19, 2026
The youngster ended up with 135 runs off 214 balls with eleven boundaries and six sixes. He also scored a crucial 31 off 35 balls in the second innings and picked up one wicket in a draw.
That was just the start of his campaign. Since then, the young all-rounder has gone on to play two more matches and helped his side win both. In the four games so far, Manvanth has amassed 374 runs at an average of 74.8, with two tons and a fifty, and also claimed seven wickets.
The young seamer is quick with the ball. He has played three List A games and five T20 matches so far and has done reasonably well.
Next India star in the making?
With Hardik in and out of the side due to injuries, team management has given chances to Shivam Dubey and Suryansh Shedge to fill the role. Dube played a key role for India in the 2024 and 2026 T20 World Cups, but his performance graph has gone down drastically. Shedge, on the other hand, is still finding his feet and had a difficult start to his India career.
The young cricketer has everything the team management is looking for: a player who can bat well and also chip in with a few overs. While it is too early to say, the early glimpses do show that he is talented, and proper guidance could propel him to greater heights.