Shikhar Mohan has been the talk of the town recently in Indian domestic cricket. The left-hander from Jharkhand became the first centurion of Ranji Trophy 2026-27, after the 21-year-old scored 143 off 196 deliveries against Kerala at the Keenan Stadium in Jamshedpur. Opting to bat first, Mohan and his opening partner Sharandeep Singh made most use of the batting friendly conditions on Sunday.
While Sharandeep was dismissed for 33, Mohan continued his onslaught and along with Utkarsh Singh, forged 163 runs for the second wicket to set a platform for a big total for Jharkhand. However, Mohan was finally dismissed in the 71st over off Vaisakh Chandran, thereby missing his 150 by seven runs. But his knock has set the base for Jharkhand.
At the time of writing, Jharkhand are sitting comfortably at 495/5 in 161 overs with captain Virat Singh (102 not out) and Aditya Chandresh Singh (120 not out) also registering their respective hundreds. Utkarsh contributed with 71 before he was dismissed.
Arguably the 21-year-old is the hosttest cricketing talent in the country at the moment. In fact, former India spinner and currently a member of the Jharkhand State Cricket Association (JSCA), Shahbaz Nadeem, called Mohan a “long-term prospect”, according to TimesofIndia.com.
Mohan hails from Doranda, a familiar part of Ranchi, which is mostly known for its educational institutions. Having picked up a bat at around the age of six when is father Suraj took him to the Ranchi Cricket Academy, Mohan impressed everyone at U-16, U-19 and U-23 levels before making his First-Class debut in the previous season.
In the his 2023-24 Col CK Nayudu Trophy (U-23), Mohan scored 623 runs, with two hundreds and three half-centuries. He continued his run-scoring spree in the following season, with 887 runs, thus earning himself a call-up in the Jhankhand senior side.
In his maiden Ranji Trophy season, Mohan impressed with 613 runs from eight matches at a strike rate of 56.03, and scored two half-centuries and three hundreds. The highlight of debut season was a 207 against Nagaland in his only third appearance.
Since then, the left-hander has been in the headlines, for all the good reasons. Playing for South Zone, Mohan grabbed the limelight from in the Duleep Trophy final, scoring 85 and 52 in both innings to lead his team to title after 13 years, beating South Zone.
Mohan followed it up with another solid knock of 60 on a green top in Srinagar against Jammu and Kashmir in the recently-concluded Irani Trophy, while playing for Rest of India side, led by Rishabh Pant.
Mohan also spoke about the Ishan Kishan and Rishabh Pant’s impact on his short career. “Ishan (Kishan) bhaiya has been very helpful in my career. Whenever he joins the team for Ranji or Vijay Hazare matches, he brings a very positive mindset and shares his top-level experience, advising what to do and not to do in specific situations,” Mohan told TOI.
“Even during the Duleep Trophy final, he guided me on which shots to play on that pitch. Then in the Irani Cup, I had the privilege of playing under Rishabh (Pant) bhaiya. He shared his perspective on handling match situations, reading the game under pressure, and how to stay mentally composed,” added the southpaw.
