For many players, the Buchi Babu Invitational Tournament serves as the perfect platform to prepare for the domestic season, and Tanay Thyagarajan is no different. For the Hyderabad left-arm spinner, the matches offered an opportunity to test the work he put in during the off-season and find his rhythm before joining the South Zone squad in Bengaluru for the Duleep Trophy.
ALSO READ: Rohit Rayudu, Tanmay Agarwal give Hyderabad strong start against MP
“After the last Ranji Trophy season, there were a couple of things I wanted to work on — being more consistent with my lines and trying a few things at the crease,” Tanay, who has picked 131 First-Class wickets in 50 innings so far, told Sportstar on Tuesday. “They’ll be part of my arsenal going forward. If I get the chance, I’ll try them in the Duleep Trophy too.”
At 29, Tanay sees the Duleep Trophy as a chance to compete alongside and against quality players — and perhaps open doors to bigger opportunities. “If you have a good tournament, you never know what happens,” he said.
He is also looking forward to sharing a dressing room with some of South Zone’s best. “Kerala did really well last season, reaching the finals, so I’m keen to chat with their players. Of course, R. Sai Kishore — a few years back, we played Duleep together. Being a left-arm spinner, there are a couple of things I want to talk to him about.”
South Zone, which won the title in 2023 when the tournament was last played in the zonal format, will start directly in the semifinals alongside West Zone. “It’s tricky, but it’ll be the same for the other team as well. Yes, they’ll have had one match before, but to break into the 15 and then play a knockout is challenging. The quality is very high,” he explained.
With 52 wickets across two white-ball formats, Tanay’s consistency in domestic cricket hasn’t gone unnoticed. He earned an Indian Premier League (IPL) contract in the 2024 season with Punjab Kings, who signed him for his base price of ₹20 lakh. Though he did not make his debut, the experience proved valuable. “I enjoyed the professionalism at that level — the planning and preparation. Watching and learning in that environment was great. Despite the team not doing well that season, the management and leaders did a really good job of keeping things steady.”
The IPL auction timing, however, remains a concern for players. Last year, it was held just one match into the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy (SMAT). “You can’t prove anything in one match. We felt it’s best not to think about it because it’s not in our hands. It might be the same this year. In that situation, all you can do is go out, play, and win matches.”
Starting previous season, the BCCI also split the Ranji Trophy into two phases, with five First-Class games followed by SMAT (T20) and Vijay Hazare Trophy (List A) before returning to red-ball cricket. Tanay admits switching formats so quickly is a challenge. “It’s about making that mental switch — planning and preparing for it. On off-days, the physical prep is still with the red ball, so it’s mostly mental.”
Hyderabad’s white-ball record has been underwhelming. The team is yet to win either the Vijay Hazare Trophy or SMAT. Tanay believes a State T20 league could help bridge that gap. “Buchi Babu helps cover red-ball prep, but there’s nothing for white-ball. If Hyderabad gets its own T20 league — and hopefully it will — players will be much better prepared.”
“We weren’t close to qualifying in the white-ball tournaments, so as a team, we need to step up. The goal is to qualify and compete for the championship, and I want to do my bit to help us get there,” he added.
Published on Aug 26, 2025
