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What Now, CSK? Out-Of-Favour Batter Hammers 248 In Ranji Trophy Against Mumbai
Follow UsHe now has a ton and a 248 in his first 3 Ranji games of the season
He looks all set to be released after a disastrous Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 season with Chennai Super Kings (CSK), but Deepak Hooda is doing everything in his power to not just prove a point to CSK, but all the other franchises ahead of the mini auction.
After starting the 2025/26 Ranji season with a century against Chhattisgarh, Hooda, in Rajasthan’s ongoing clash against Mumbai, produced one of his best-ever knocks as he hammered 248 off just 335 balls to give his side a massive first innings lead in the clash taking place at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium in Jaipur.
Walking in at 124/2, Hooda hit 22 fours and 2 sixes against a strong Mumbai attack consisting of Shardul Thakur, Tushar Deshpande and Shams Mulani amongst others as Rajasthan racked up 617/6 dec in response to Mumbai’s 254 all-out. For Mumbai, Yashasvi Jaiswal top scored with 67.
Despite this red-ball surge, though, Hooda will almost certainly get released by CSK ahead of IPL 2026. The batter, who was bought for 1.70 cr at the mega auction, averaged 6.20 in IPL 2025 with just 31 runs in the entire season. His horror form contributed to the Super Kings finishing bottom for the first time in IPL history.
The 30-year-old has also played for Punjab Kings, Rajasthan Royals, Sunrisers Hyderabad and Lucknow Super Giants.