Sai Kishore

A six-foot three left-arm spinner from Tamil Nadu, R Sai Kishore rose through the ranks in Tamil Nadu to get to the state team, the Tamil Nadu Premier League and the IPL before a T20I debut with a second-string India side during the Asian Games in Hangzhou in 2023.

He made a mark for Tamil Nadu in only his second one-day game when he took a four-for in the 2016-17 Vijay Hazare semi-final before his team went on to lift the trophy. He was already among the most consistent players in the TNPL by then, known for his frugal economy rate, accuracy and wicket-taking ability with the new ball. Like his idol R Ashwin, Sai Kishore soon replicated that 50-over form in the T20 Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy in 2019-20, when he topped the wicket-taking chart in Tamil Nadu's run to the final.

Sai Kishore, who wears the No. 99 jersey like his idol R Ashwin, uses his height and long fingers to impart spin and overspin on the ball. By 2019, aged 23, he had also been a net bowler for CSK and the "internship" helped him learn a lot from the shellacking he got from MS Dhoni in the nets and the advice he got from Harbhajan Singh.

CSK then gave Sai Kishore his maiden IPL gig in 2020, for his base price of Rs 20 lakh, although he didn't get any games. But he soon had another stellar season for Tamil Nadu as they lifted the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. He returned 4-1-11-0 in the final, opening the bowling, and had an economy rate of 4.82 in the tournament. In July 2021, he was among the reserve bowlers for India's T20I tour of Sri Lanka, and in 2022 he got a Rs 3 crore deal with Gujarat Titans. The new franchise gave him five games and he bagged six wickets in their victorious season.

Later in the year, he played in the Duleep Trophy for South Zone and picked up seven wickets in the final, which they lost to West Zone, and became Tamil Nadu's top wicket-taker in the subsequent Ranji Trophy with 29 from six games, including two five-fors. In July 2023, his four-for helped South Zone lift the Duleep Trophy and he carried his form into the 2023-24 season, which was when he made his India debut.

- After being a net bowler for Chennai Super Kings (CSK), R Sai Kishore was signed by the franchise in 2020, although he spent the season on the bench

- He was signed by Gujarat Titans in their inaugural season, and took six wickets from five matches as they won the title in 2022

- He didn't play in 2023, but made five appearances in IPL 2024, bagging seven wickets. He was bought back by Gujarat Titans for INR 2 crore using the Right-to-Match card in the IPL 2025 auction. He repaid the faith by scalping 19 wickets in 15 games as GT made it to the knockouts.