Prithvi Shaw to Make Buchi Babu 2025 Debut; Ruturaj Gaikwad to Join Him

The domestic cricket season in India is all set to start this month, and it will be a great opportunity for all the young as well as experienced players to make their case strong for the national setup. Since the last few months, the domestic performers are getting a lot of recognition, and some of the players have already made it into the national side.

The domestic season in India will begin with the All India Buchi Babu Invitational Tournament. The tournament will kick start on 18th August with the final set to take place on 9th September. All the games will be played in Chennai, and a total of 14 teams will take part in it.
With the All India Buchi Babu Invitational Tournament around the corner, Maharashtra has announced their strong 17-member squad, which will be captained by young Ankit Bawane. Some of the prominent names have been named in the team, and they surely will be one of the hot favourites to win.

Prithvi Shaw Buchi Babu Debut Confirmed; Ruturaj Gaikwad to Join

Maharashtra surely will have one of the strongest opening pairs in the tournament, with Prithvi Shaw Buchi Babu debut confirmed. Along with Ruturaj Gaikwad, to join him. A lot would be reliant on them as they will have to form a solid partnership at the top if the team has to fancy their chances of winning. As for Shaw, he rose to fame while being one of the youngest cricket players for India.
The deadly opening pair of Ruturaj Gaikwad and Prithvi Shaw was formed after the latter recently changed his state team. Shaw, who was dropped from Mumbai's squad due to fitness and discipline issues, recently got the NOC to play for Maharashtra.
Prithvi Shaw Buchi Babu debut in Maharashtra colours will give solidity to the opening combination, and he would be keen to make an instant impact, especially with the tough times that he endured. From slamming a century on his Test debut to getting dropped from the state team, Shaw witnessed a massive downfall.

Shaw, along with Ruturaj Gaikwad, who recently played for India A in the unofficial Test series against England Lions, has been out of the national team setup for a long time. Both players will have a great opportunity to score runs and make their case strong for the India comeback.

However, Gaikwad will have only one game to set the stage on fire in the Buchi Babu Invitational tournament. He will be leaving the squad after the opening game as he, along with wicketkeeper Saurabh Nawale, is expected to join the West Zone squad for the Duleep Trophy 2025, which will begin on August 28.
The other notable names in the Maharashtra squad for the Buchi Babu Invitational Tournament are Arshin Kulkarni, Mukesh Choudhary, Vicky Ostwal, Prashant Solanki, and Rajvardhan Hangargekar. They have featured in the Indian Premier League (IPL) as well and would be eager to use their experience.

Maharashtra Schedule for the Buchi Babu Trophy 2025

Maharashtra will open their campaign in the Buchi Babu Trophy 2025 with the game against Chhattisgarh at Gurunanak College on 18th August. In round two (August 22-24), they will take on the TNCA President’s XI at Gojan College B Ground.

Following that, they are slated to lock horns with HPCA at Murugappa Ground in the third round from August 26th to 28th. If they qualify, then the semi-finals will be played from 31st August to 3rd September. The final is scheduled to be played from 6th to 9th September. A solid showcase of cricket could also see either Prithvi Shaw or Ruturaj Gaikwad secure a place in Team India, one of the best cricket teams in the world.

Maharashtra squad

Ankit Bawane (c), Ruturaj Gaikwad, Prithvi Shaw, Siddhesh Veer, Sachin Dhas, Arshin Kulkarni, Harshal Kate, Siddharth Mhatre, Saurabh Nawale (wk), Mandar Bhandari (wk), Ramakrishna Ghosh, Mukesh Choudhary, Pradeep Dadhe, Vicky Ostwal, Hitesh Walunj, Prashant Solanki, Rajvardhan Hangargekar