Sachin Baby has unfinished business in KCL

: There was a time in his career when Sachin Baby could do no wrong. It was as though he was writing the script. He was scoring mountains of runs and, as captain, led Kerala to its first-ever Ranji Trophy final. His rich vein of form continued in the inaugural Kerala Cricket League as well. Sachin scored a century in the final, anchoring Aries Kollam Sailors to the title in 2024.

But cricket, like life, is a great leveller. The 2025-26 domestic season turned out to be a chastening and sobering experience for Sachin. Although he had a decent run in the second edition of KCL, guiding Kollam Sailors to a second consecutive final, the runs dried up in Ranji Trophy. A string of soft dismissals and uncharacteristic dropped catches by him saw the triggered mounting whispers of him being dropped from the Ranji Trophy team.

Eventually, Sachin lost his place in the Kerala white-ball team. “Last season I endured one of the lowest points of my career with the Kerala team. To be honest, there was a lot of negativity in the dressing room. Senior players Jalaj Saxena and Aditya Sarwate left due to differences with coach Amay Khurasiya. He even wanted to drop me because of my age. However, I saved my career by scoring a century against Madhya Pradesh. I am still one of the fittest players in the squad and it is not a crime to continue playing when you are past 35. I still have a few more years of cricket left in me,’’ said the 37-year-old Sachin.

He has some unfinished business and is determined to prove detractors wrong. As the newly-appointed captain of Alleppey Ripples, Sachin is focused on reversing the team’s poor run in the KCL. “It is an honour to lead Alleppey Ripples. We have a well- balanced side featuring some exciting talents like Sibin Girish and Abhijith Praveen alongside the experienced players like Jalaj Saxena and Mohammed Azharuddeen. My role will be to mentor the youngsters, make them feel at home and help them to realise their potential in the KCL,” he said.

On Kerala players being overlooked in the IPL, Sachin Baby felt the players must deliver impactful performances more consistently not just in KCL but across major domestic white-ball tournaments. “The IPL franchises are strictly looking for match-winners and the competition is cut-throat. Our players need to seize every opportunity and consistently deliver game-changing performances with both bat and ball. Furthermore, Kerala needs to reach the knockout stages of SMAT and VHT regularly for our players to be noticed by IPL scouts,” he concluded.