Karun Nair and Jitesh Sharma to Part Ways with Vidarbha
Karun Nair and Jitesh Sharma to Part Ways with Vidarbha
Domestic season 2025-26: 33-year-old Karun Nair hints at rejoining the Karnataka Team. Meanwhile, Jitesh Sharma is expected to join Baroda.
After a stellar 2024–25 domestic season, Vidarbha might be heading into the new campaign without two of its biggest stars. Karun Nair and Jitesh Sharma, both crucial to the team’s success across formats, are reportedly parting ways with the Nagpur-based side.
Vidarbha had a dream run last season winning the Ranji Trophy, finishing runners-up in the Vijay Hazare Trophy, and reaching the quarterfinals of the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy (SMAT). A big part of that success came from the batting brilliance of Nair and Jitesh.
Now, change is in the air. Jitesh, 31, is all set to join Baroda, while 33-year-old Nair is likely returning to his roots in Karnataka. Nair had moved away from his home state ahead of the 2023–24 season but is now expected to go back due to personal and family reasons. Sources from the Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA) have hinted that his return is almost certain.
Nair’s numbers last season were nothing short of remarkable. He racked up 863 runs in the Ranji Trophy making him the fourth-highest run-scorer and topped the Vijay Hazare charts with 779 runs. He also captained Vidarbha in the Vijay Hazare Trophy and is currently with the Indian team in England, possibly on the verge of a national comeback after eight years.
As for Jitesh, his move to Baroda seems all but confirmed. Officials from the Baroda Cricket Association (BCA) expect the transfer to be finalized within days. While he didn’t feature in the Ranji Trophy and had a quiet domestic white-ball season, Jitesh made headlines in the IPL. Playing for Royal Challengers Bengaluru, he delivered some clutch performances including a vital cameo in the final and even stepped in as captain when Rajat Patidar was injured.
BCA officials have confirmed that Jitesh will represent Baroda in both red-ball and white-ball formats. He hasn’t commented publicly yet, but Cricbuzz has reached out to him.
Looking at last season’s results, Karnataka had the upper hand in the Vijay Hazare Trophy, beating Nair’s Vidarbha in the final. However, they missed out on the knockouts in both SMAT and Ranji. Baroda, meanwhile, made it to the SMAT semifinals and Vijay Hazare quarterfinals but couldn’t progress beyond the league stage in Ranji.