Danish Malewar, a teenage batting wonder from Vidarbha, astonished everyone with his batting prowess at the Duleep Trophy, which kicked off the 2025–26 domestic season. The 21-year-old demonstrated his dominance in red-ball cricket at such a young age by hitting a dominant 203 for Central Zone versus North East Zone before quitting.
Since making his first-class debut in late 2024, Malewar has risen quickly. In his first Ranji season, he amassed an incredible 783 runs, including a vital 153 against Kerala in the final, which gave Vidarbha their third Ranji Trophy victory. After Karun Nair and Yash Rathod, he was Vidarbha’s third-highest run scorer that season.
He is now also the first Vidarbha centurion in the history of the Duleep Trophy.
His most notable achievements occurred during the Ranji Trophy knockout stages in 2024. Before taking centre stage in the summit match against Kerala, Malewar put up a valiant 79 against Mumbai in the semifinals. With an average of 52.20 at the end of the season, he was the fifth-highest run scorer.
The Nagpur native, who bats at number three, is more like Rahul Dravid and Cheteshwar Pujara in that he has a cool head and can grind down bowlers. He has already scored fifty or more runs five times in just ten first-class games, turned several scores into hundreds, and has an outstanding average of 65.40. The child’s path hasn’t been simple, though, because he comes from a lower-middle-class family.
When I was seven years old, I was accepted into an academy because my father had always wanted me to play cricket. Despite his many challenges, he made sure that my cricketing needs were met. When I made runs as a junior, some individuals used to offer me bats, pads, and gloves. Only after my under-19 days did money begin to flow in,” Malewar told Indian Express.
Malewar entered the game early and maturely anchored the innings. Aryan Juyal and he first put together a 144-run partnership before the batsman-wicketkeeper got injured and departed at 60. After that, he and captain Rajat Patidar formed an incredible 199-run partnership, with Patidar hitting 125 off just 96 balls.
Malewar’s outstanding double century not only demonstrated his capacity for long innings but also bolstered his rising prominence in the Indian domestic scene. Since Virat Kohli and Cheteshwar Pujara have both retired from Test cricket, the BCCI selectors will be closely watching him for the vital No. 3 batting spot in red-ball internationals. It might not be too long until they are called up to the Indian Test setup after a successful 2025–26 season and steady performances.
India
