Sarthak Ranjan was picked by KKR for INR 30 Lakhs.
Soon after Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) successfully acquired Sarthak Ranjan for his base price of INR 30 Lakhs at IPL 2026 auction, the chatter around his background and family gained noise. There were obvious talks about Sarthak using his influential parents’ power to get an IPL deal; his father, Rajaesh Ranjan, popularly known as Pappu Yadav, and his mother, Ranjeet Ranjan, are prominent figures in Bihar politics.
However, KKR saw potential and recent improvements in his batting abilities, which have, unfortunately, always taken a backseat in his career. Sarthak started playing cricket as a passion, but his passion soon became a burden as he had to bear taunts from people around him.
In an interview with The Times of India, Sarthak Ranjan said how he has been grateful for everything, despite hearing those taunts, which affected his mental health at one stage. After getting picked in the IPL, the 29-year-old wants to come out of his parents’ shadow and make a name for himself on his own.
“Their presence had a big impact on my cricket. I would say it wasn’t great, because a lot of times people looked at me only because of my parents. They thought I wasn’t good enough to be at whatever level I was playing. That took a toll on my health, and I had mental issues a few years back. The zeal that kept me pushing was that I so desperately wanted to get out of the shadows of my parents’ name that I just couldn’t settle for anything less.”
Playing for North Delhi Strikers in the Delhi Premier League (DPL), Sarthak Ranjan didn’t have a great first season, where he was good in patches but failed to get consistency. He spoke to the likes of Ayush Badoni and Priyansh Arya, who suggested the upgrades required in his batting.
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From there on, he improved his technique and fitness and had a fabulous DPL 2025, where he was the second-leading run-getter. Sarthak scored 449 runs at an average of 56.12 and a strike rate of 146.73 in nine innings, including four fifties and a century.
KKR won’t require Sarthak Ranjan in the starting XI, and he will mostly serve as a backup in the squad. He is a top-order batter and can play if someone like Ajinkya Rahane and Angkrish Raghuvanshi are unavailable.
He will gain valuable experience and evolve as a batter by working with Abhishek Nayar, whose coaching methods fascinate Sarthak, as he looks to take his game to the next level. The pressure of the surname will always remain, but this IPL stint with KKR might precisely be what he requires to come out of his parents’ shadow after being subjected to taunts at every level for years.
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