Follow UsExplosiveness? Perseverance?
24-year-old Tushar Raheja possesses a blend of both, but what’s unlocked this crazy purple patch of his? Keeping things simple.
From a young age, Tushar was drawn to the world of sports. He started with tennis, then moved on to football and badminton. When India lifted the 2007 T20 World Cup, his calling became clear: he would pursue cricket, applying the skills he had honed in other sports.
“100%. I think it's not only tennis. I grew up playing a lot of sports. I used to play a lot of football and badminton. Playing different sports has helped in various ways, like improving my hand-eye coordination, or how you move, like your feet and everything,” Tushar said in a cricket.com exclusive.
He finally found his groove as a cricketer around 2018, but a new challenge emerged. Stuck in the middle order and shuffled between positions, he began to overthink his game. Things changed for him in 2023, though. The 22-year-old approached IDream Tiruppur Tamizhans’ head coach, RX Muralidhar, with a bold request: a chance to open the batting.
“It was a couple of years back, when I was batting in the middle order during my first few years for IDream [Tiruppur Tamizhans]. Before the 2023 TNPL, I was pestering him before the season that I wanted to open. In this one practice session, when the whole squad wasn’t there, he gave me a chance to open, and he liked my intent in that knock,” he said.
Since then, Tushar has found himself blowing the run-scoring charts off the grid, with a 324-run season in 2024, and following it up with a 488-run season in 2025, where his strike rate shot up to 185.6. The 488-run season in 2025 ultimately put him on a national-level pedestal, with plenty of IPL teams scouting the youngster closely.
What did he change in his own game?
“In this TNPL, I just tried to react to the ball, and didn’t pre-plan or pre-meditate too much. Obviously, before the match, I did a lot of planning around what the bowlers would do, what their strengths were. But when I was out there batting, I wasn’t overthinking; I kept a clean slate and reacted to the situation. It was what I thought helped me a lot this season. The chances of failing are less when you react and there aren’t too many thoughts.”
It was visible in his game, as the left-hander struck 78 boundaries during the season, with 77% of his TNPL 2025 runs coming in just boundaries. Despite opening the innings, Tushar had the best strike rate (185.6) and had the most runs (488) by a huge margin, only once getting out below 20 in the competition.
“I wasn’t thinking about a certain number of runs or consistency; I just wanted to express myself and play a brand of cricket I normally would. If the ball was in my arc, I wanted to get it to the boundary ropes, that’s all.”
However, the success he found wasn’t overnight; it was because of the volume of work that he put behind himself over the last year working with his personal coach, TV Ramkumar. One of the major aspects they worked on was Tushar’s game against spin, which wasn’t bad, but he bettered it to a level where there weren’t too many spinners who could dominate him.
“Over the last year, I feel my batting against spin has improved. I put a lot of work into it, as I always felt like I was slowing down after the powerplay when the spinners came on. A lot of drills with my coach, Mr. T.V. Ramkumar, about how I can pick the length faster, and the different shots I can play. So, I started sweeping a little more last year, and so on.”
It has been evident, as the left-hander had a strike rate of 180 against Ashwin (45 off 24), 157.1 against Varun Chakaravarthy (33 off 21) and 257.1 against Murugan Ashwin (18 off 7). In particular, his dominance against both Ashwin and Varun caught the attention of several, and the reason behind his success? Visualisation and simplicity.
“I have done well against them even in the second league game. So, obviously, that confidence was always there when you are playing the same team the second time. But other than that, I think in white ball cricket, in T20s especially, you can't really look at names while batting. You have to play the ball and not the bowler.
“So, again, I watched a few of their videos to see what they are trying to do. What are they going to bowl? What are their strengths? So, according to that, there were shots that you planned that I visualised playing and planned before the game, as to whether he is going to bowl here, these are my options.”
Has it been because he’s added more shots to his arsenal?
“I wouldn’t say I have added a few shots, because they were always there since 2018/19. But they have never translated into runs. The potential, I would say, was always there, but they never translated into runs. So, I have learned a lot by failing. I think you learn the most only when you fail. When you win, there is not much you will learn.”
More importantly, Tushar has found his rhythm and prolonged aggression because of how calm he has been on the field with the bat. While earlier various thoughts constantly buzzed him, his newfound calmness has helped him achieve sustained success.
“Over the last couple of years, that [staying calm] is something I have worked on. Trying to stay as calm as possible. I have been doing a lot of breathing exercises. A lot of breath work, like meditation, before the games. While batting, there are small breathing exercises that I have learned to do.”
The success of IDream Tiruppur Tamizhans—and Tushar’s major part in it—can be traced back to the team culture. Head coach RX Muralidhar and captain Sai Kishore created a supportive atmosphere that allowed emerging players to step out of the shadows and into the spotlight, helping the franchise clinch the trophy.
“I can't praise him enough for his work with the Tiruppur team. He has been with us for about three to four years, and his work is showing now. He plays a major part in the brand of cricket that we want to play. Unless the coaches and the management give us that freedom to express ourselves, we won’t be able to do it as a team.
“He has worked with some of the finest cricketers in the country. When you are getting guided by someone like that, it gives you a sense of confidence. He’s given many invaluable tips, which can make a huge difference. Say, just small changes in the way we hold our bat, and things like that. He has played a huge part in whatever IDream Tiruppur Tamizhans and I have achieved over the years,” he added.
It was no accident that his success as an opener in TNPL caught the attention of several IPL franchises, including trials at both Delhi Capitals and Rajasthan Royals, where he was under the watchful eyes of Rahul Dravid and Hemang Badani.
“So, I trialled for Rajasthan [Royals] and Delhi [Capitals] last year. Priyansh Arya was present on the same day for both teams in the trial. Meeting the likes of Rahul Dravid or Hemang Badani only gives you plenty of confidence. It might sound a little stupid to a third person.
“It can make a world of difference when you just interact with them, as they give you the confidence when they tell you, 'You've played well'. I did discuss a few things with Rahul Dravid and Zubin [Bharucha] sir present. They told me how I can get better against spin, and I asked them for a few tips. I practise with that pattern and develop a pattern of shots in the nets.
"In the DC trial, Hemang [Badani] sir follows the TNPL and told me about the different challenges I could face. He also advised me on how to train for a higher level, which gave me confidence. I took those inputs and worked hard before the TNPL and last year's SMAT."
With that renewed focus and confidence, Tushar heads into a bigger challenge: finding red-ball success. Tamil Nadu’s misfortunes in the Ranji Trophy have been a constant headline over the last three decades, where they consistently find a way to get eliminated at the wrong stage.
On the flip side, with players from the previous generation moving on, like Vijay Shankar and Baba Aparajith, it gives youngsters like Tushar a prime opportunity to excel in the red-ball format.
The left-hander is doing himself no harm in his bid to be named in Tamil Nadu’s Ranji Trophy squad, with a sizzling run in the ongoing Buchi Babu Trophy 2025, with 303 runs in three appearances, including a 137 against Ranji Trophy behemoths, Mumbai.
Throughout the tournament, the left-hander constantly conversed with selector Vasudevadas, who offered invaluable, yet simple, advice: 'Stay true to yourself.'
“Red-ball ambitions were always there, and these three games [Buchi Babu Trophy], I had a lot of conversations with the selectors and the coaches. It helped me when they told me to play my natural game. They didn’t want me to restrict myself too much because I felt that was something I was doing in the league games. I didn’t get the results I wanted.
“In the Buchi Babu trophy, I just tried to express myself and play naturally aggressive cricket. I accepted that if I fail, I will do it on my own terms. I’m grateful that this approach gave me results.”
It wasn’t too difficult for the left-hander to switch between formats, owing to the constant cricket that cricketers in Tamil Nadu play, be it club cricket, the Raja of Palayampati Shield or TNPL.
“It's not a drastic change. At the end of the day, we are all professionals. We have to keep switching between formats and everything. It is a minor mindset switch, nothing drastic. You know, in Chennai, playing first division cricket now for a few years, we play multiple formats in a year. I figured out how to adapt with just small changes.”
Tushar has also worked extremely hard on his wicketkeeping, an aspect of the game he believes can make or break a player's career.
“Obviously, that's one thing you can't neglect, I feel. There’s a lot of work that I’m putting right now, and I have a lot of work to do on keeping further as well. I’m trying not to neglect that. It is something that goes unnoticed when there are a lot of other good things that happen to you. But one drop catch, you will ruin your reputation.”
An alumnus of St. Bede, Tushar is no stranger to Chennai, and how much growing up with cricket has meant to him, be it his constant visits to the old Chepauk, where he watched Matthew Hayden sizzle the bowlers like they were on a barbecue, or watch CSK chants reverberate around at the venue.
“I was a huge fan of him [Hayden]. In fact, there are so many things I have tried to replicate, which he does as well in my batting. But growing up, I think that time, the IPL was fairly new. And I used to go to a lot of the CSK matches. So, I think the way he took down fast bowlers was something I really admired.
"The way he used to walk down and hit the fastest bowlers in the league was incredible. I remember the old Chepauk Stadium, and the echo it created when the ball hit the middle of Hayden’s bat. The stands didn't have so many gaps then, so the sound used to echo a lot more. Those are distinct memories I can't forget—especially the sound. It was one of the things I truly admired about watching him bat."
Obviously, growing up in Chennai, Tushar reveals how it would be a ‘dream-come-true’ moment for him if he gets the opportunity to don the famous Yellow jersey ahead of IPL 2026.
"As someone who grew up in Chennai admiring the team and Dhoni, it would be a dream come true to get the opportunity to wear the CSK yellow jersey," he concluded.