Ruturaj Gaikwad slammed a century in his fourth outing in the ongoing Vijay Hazare Trophy 2025/26 as the Maharashtra captain hit 124 from 113 balls during his team's clash against Uttarakhand on Wednesday, December 31.
Gaikwad was dismissed for cheap scores in two of the previous three outings, but has now struck a strong hundred in the fourth match at the Anantam Ground, Jaipur as he led his team put up a strong score of 331/7.
As the race for selection in India's middle-order in the ODIs heats up, Gaikwad might have made a strong case with a hundred, however, there were others too who played big knocks.
Padikkal, Sarfaraz slam tons
Star batters Devdutt Padikkal and Sarfaraz Khan also slammed centuries in the ongoing Vijay Hazare Trophy to push for their case in India's ODI squad for the New Zealand series that kicks off on January 11.
Padikkal has continued his Midas run in the 50-over format as he slammed 113 for Karnataka against Puducherry in their clash in Ahmedabad. This was Padikkal's third ton in four matches of the ongoing Vijay Hazare Trophy. He had slammed 147 against Jharkhand in the second-biggest run-chase of List A cricket as he helped his team hunt down 413. Padikkal had also hit 124 against Kerala in the next match.
Meanwhile, Sarfaraz Khan was in insane touch for Mumbai in their clash against Goa at the Jaipuria Vidyalaya Ground, Jaipur. The star batter slammed 157 from just 75 balls, scoring his runs with 14 sixes and nine fours and at a strike rate of 209.33.
Space vacant in India's middle order
There is a vacant spot in India's middle order as Shreyas Iyer is unlikely to feature in the upcoming series against New Zealand as he continues his recovery from the spleen injury he suffered in Australia.
In his absence, Ruturaj played at No.4 and slammed his maiden ODI ton in the second match in Raipur. He might be holding the edge over others for a spot at No.4; however, Padikkal and Sarfaraz are also close. Padikkal is generally a top-order batter but can be fielded in the middle-order if the BCCI selectors want to use his red hot form.
