Rajangad Bawa — doing everything in his power to make up for lost time Premium

Rajangad Bawa, a promising Indian all-rounder, overcomes injuries to make a strong comeback in domestic cricket.

 India seems to produce a cluster of star performers in every U-19 World Cup these days, to the extent that displays in the tournament have nearly ceased to earn these youngsters a quicker route to the national set-up. Even so, it was worth sticking around and seeking an extended chat with Rajangad Bawa at the end of a hard-fought opening day between Chandigarh and Delhi in the fourth round of the Ranji Trophy.

He is, after all, a seam-bowling all-rounder, a job description that continues to be as elusive in Indian cricket as a pollution-free winter day in the national capital. And he is only 21.

If his numbers don’t necessarily make for compelling reading at this juncture, it’s primarily because the youngster from Chandigarh has not played enough cricket since his exploits in India’s title-winning U-19 World Cup campaign in 2022. Before his Ranji Trophy outing against Delhi commenced on Wednesday, he had made just eight First-Class, six List- A and 13 T20 appearances.

The reason for the limited game time has been his tryst with injuries, but before we dwell on that, let’s cast our memory back to the 14th edition of the U-19 World Cup in early 2022 to understand why Bawa’s all-round skills evoked genuine excitement in the first place. On the idyllic islands that make up the Caribbean, with India eyeing its fifth U-19 title, he displayed belligerence as a left-hand batter while finishing as India’s second-best run-getter and sharpness as a right-arm seamer to end as its third-highest wicket-taker. Both aspects came together perfectly on the big day, winning the Player of the Match in the final by bagging five for 31 before contributing 35 in a nervy run chase against England U-19.

When a Ranji debut for Chandigarh, a maiden IPL stint with Punjab Kings and an India A call-up for a 50-over series against New Zealand-A all followed that year, there was a sense that he was on the right track. But then, destiny had other plans.

“After the U-19 World Cup, I played in the Ranji Trophy, IPL, and for India A. There was non-stop cricket going on,” Bawa, now donning a neatly-trimmed beard, told The Hindu. “Because of the load the body was taking, I had started feeling it a little bit, but the mistake I made was that I didn’t take rest. I just kept playing. Then during the first practice session for India- A (against NZ-A), I felt something was wrong because I was sensing back pain after bowling. The National Cricket Academy (NCA) physios managed it well at that time and made me even play two matches comfortably. After that, when I went to play for Chandigarh in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, I felt the issue had become bigger. The NCA called me to Bengaluru, and the back issue was sorted in 2-3 months. But then when I started bowling again, I suffered a tear near my right shoulder. This was two months before IPL 2023. Normally, a tear takes 2-3 months to recover, but my issue was a bit complicated. It took me 5-6 months to get back. I missed the IPL and other tournaments and the comeback took longer than expected.”

The good news is that Bawa is fully fit and back playing regularly for Chandigarh. And unlike last season when he was just returning to action, he is now free of constraints about his workload and anxiety about the prospect of getting injured again. That is reflected in his performances too. In his three completed matches for Chandigarh in the Ranji Trophy this season, he has made 209 runs at 52.25, including a career-best 146, and picked up eight wickets, significantly better than his numbers in the 2023-24 Ranji campaign where he had played all of three games.