Anuj Rawat Biography: Age, Height, Family, Stats, Records, Domestic Career & full Career Story
Anuj Rawat’s story is one of India’s most familiar cricketing arcs told with an unfamiliar ending, a small-town boy sent to the big city at eleven, trained under a coach who once shaped Virat Kohli, and crowned a junior world champion, yet still searching for a settled seat at the senior level nearly a decade later. This article covers his childhood, coaching journey, career highs and lows, personal life, and a complete statistical record.
Quick Facts
Category | Details |
Full Name | Anuj Rawat |
Born | 17 October 1999, Ramnagar (Rooppur), Uttarakhand, India |
Age (2026) | 26 |
Role | Wicketkeeper-batter |
Batting Style | Left-handed |
Height | 1.73 m (5 ft 8 in) |
Domestic Team | Delhi (2017–present) |
IPL Team | Gujarat Titans (2025–present) |
Previous IPL Teams | Rajasthan Royals (2020–2021), Royal Challengers Bengaluru (2022–2024) |
First-Class Debut | 6 October 2017 vs Assam, Ranji Trophy |
Major Honour | 2018 ICC Under-19 Asia Cup winner |
Father | Virendra Pal Singh Rawat (farmer) |
Coach | Raj Kumar Sharma (also coached Virat Kohli) |
A Farmer’s Son Who Left Ramnagar at Eleven
Anuj Rawat was born on 17 October 1999 in Ramnagar (recorded in some accounts as the village of Rooppur), Uttarakhand, to Virendra Pal Singh Rawat, a farmer with no cricketing background of his own but a long-held ambition for his son to become a wicketkeeper-batter. With Uttarakhand offering minimal cricketing infrastructure at the time, Anuj’s father made the decisive call to send him to Delhi at the age of just 11, in 2011, to chase a future the state couldn’t offer. He attended Bal Bhavan International School while building his cricket around the move.
Rawat later spoke about the discipline that carried him through the isolating early years of the COVID-19 pandemic, waking up early specifically to avoid social contact so he could still get to the West Delhi Cricket Academy or his school ground for practice, at a time when most young cricketers’ routines were disrupted entirely.
Under Raj Kumar Sharma’s Watch in Paschim Vihar
In Delhi, Rawat enrolled at coach Raj Kumar Sharma’s academy in Paschim Vihar, West Delhi — the same academy that shaped Virat Kohli from childhood, giving Rawat access to a coaching lineage with a proven track record of producing India-quality batters. He cleared the trials that placed him in the Delhi Junior team, decided at a Junior Selection Committee meeting held at the historic Ferozeshah Kotla ground, and has credited training alongside and learning from senior Delhi cricketers like Gautam Gambhir and Ishant Sharma as central to his development as a gloveman and top-order batter.
COVID Mornings, an Asia Cup Medal, and a Ranji Debut Alongside Gambhir
Rawat’s first major recognition came in 2018, when he was part of the India Under-19 team that won the ICC Under-19 Asia Cup, beating Sri Lanka in the final. Later that year, he made his first-class debut for Delhi on 6 October 2017against Assam in the Ranji Trophy, playing in an XI that featured Gautam Gambhir and Ishant Sharma among others, and effecting two stumping/catching dismissals behind the stumps in a match that ended in a draw. He scored 71 and 13 in his two innings on debut, an immediate statement of his top-order credentials.
His domestic numbers built steadily from there. In the 2018–19 season, he struck his best first-class innings of 134 against Madhya Pradesh, earning the Player of the Match award, and followed it with an 88 against Saurashtra in the 2019–20 Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy.By mid-2024, his domestic résumé read 31 first-class matches, 1,338 runs at an average of 29.08, alongside 90 List A and T20 appearances and 204 wicketkeeping dismissals — numbers that consistently marked him out as one of Delhi’s most reliable keeper-batters, even without a defining breakout season.
From an ₹80 Lakh Punt to Three Different Dugouts
Rawat’s IPL career has followed a familiar pattern for many talented domestic keepers: signed on promise, given sparse opportunities, and moved on before a settled role could form.
IPL Team | Years | Notes |
Rajasthan Royals | 2020–2021 | Signed for ₹80 lakh; played just 2 matches across two seasons, batting only once |
Royal Challengers Bengaluru | 2022–2024 | Bought for ₹3.4 crore; 22 appearances, including a maiden Player-of-the-Match 66 off 47 balls vs Mumbai Indians (2022) |
Gujarat Titans | 2025–present | Signed at base price of ₹30 lakh; did not feature in IPL 2025, remains part of the wicketkeeping pool for 2026 |
Career IPL totals (as of 2026): 24 matches, 318 runs, average 19.88, highest score 66, one half-century, 26 fours and 14 sixes.
Career Highs
Milestone | Detail |
2018 ICC Under-19 Asia Cup | Part of India’s title-winning squad, defeating Sri Lanka in the final |
First-class debut | 71 & 13 vs Assam, playing alongside Gautam Gambhir and Ishant Sharma (2017) |
Career-best first-class score | 134 vs Madhya Pradesh, Player of the Match (2018–19) |
Domestic all-format volume | 204 dismissals across first-class, List A, and T20 cricket |
IPL breakthrough cameo | 66 off 47 balls vs Mumbai Indians, maiden Player of the Match (IPL 2022) |
Domestic T20 form | 88 vs Saurashtra, 2019–20 Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy |
Coaching pedigree | Trained under Raj Kumar Sharma, the same academy coach who developed Virat Kohli |
Career Lows: A DDCA Row and a Career Still Searching for a Settled Spot
- Two seasons, two games: Despite being signed by Rajasthan Royals for ₹80 lakh ahead of IPL 2020, Rawat played only two matches across his two years with the franchise, batting just once.
- A quiet 2025 IPL season: After being picked up by Gujarat Titans at his base price, he did not get a single game during the entire IPL 2025 season, underlining how competitive wicketkeeping slots remain even for an experienced domestic performer.
- DDCA controversy (January 2025): Rawat drew public criticism from Delhi and District Cricket Association secretary Ashok Sharma after joining Gujarat Titans’ pre-season training camp in Surat without securing permission to skip Delhi’s Ranji Trophy camp ahead of a crucial second-phase fixture, a reminder of the tension domestic players face balancing state and IPL commitments.
- No India recognition yet: Despite a decade of solid, if unspectacular, domestic cricket and a junior World title, Rawat has yet to receive a senior India call-up, remaining behind more established names in a deep pool of Indian wicketkeeping talent.
- Franchise churn without a breakout: Moving across three IPL teams (RR, RCB, GT) without ever nailing down a starting role has kept Rawat firmly in the “promising but unproven” bracket of Indian glovemen.
Life Beyond the Gloves
Rawat has spoken candidly about the sacrifice behind his career, a farmer’s son sent alone to Delhi at 11, with no family cricketing background to draw on. He has described the nerves of facing India’s fastest bowlers in the IPL, admitting he was “200 percent nervous” the first time he faced Jasprit Bumrah in a match. Outside the IPL and Ranji circuit, Rawat has also turned out in city-level T20 leagues, including for the East Delhi Riders in the 2024 Delhi Premier League, using such tournaments to stay match-sharp between international franchise windows.
Little-Known Facts About Anuj Rawat
- He trained under Raj Kumar Sharma, the same Delhi-based coach who shaped Virat Kohli from a young age, giving Rawat a coaching pedigree shared with one of India’s greatest modern batters.
- Rawat moved to Delhi entirely alone at age 11, one of the youngest relocation ages among current domestic wicketkeepers profiled in Indian cricket media.
- His maiden IPL Player-of-the-Match award (66 off 47 vs Mumbai Indians in 2022) came against an attack that included Jasprit Bumrah, the same bowler he has admitted made him “200 percent nervous” the first time they faced off.
- Despite being contracted to three different IPL franchises since 2020, he has remained loyal to Delhi in domestic cricket throughout his entire first-class career.
- He was part of India’s 2018 Under-19 Asia Cup-winning squad, a title that came before many of his now-more-recognised India Under-19 teammates had broken into senior franchise cricket.
- His January 2025 decision to join Gujarat Titans’ IPL camp over Delhi’s Ranji Trophy camp made national cricket news, echoing similar central-contract controversies faced by more senior India players like Ishan Kishan and Shreyas Iyer.
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Career Statistics: Complete Records Table
| Format | Matches | Runs | Average | Highest Score | Centuries | Half-Centuries |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| First-Class | 31 | 1,338 | 29.08 | 134 | 1+ | — |
| List A | 90 (combined List A & T20) | — | 33.15 (List A) | 88 | 0 | — |
| T20 (Domestic) | Included above | — | 24.06 | — | 0 | — |
| IPL | 24 | 318 | 19.88 | 66 | 0 | 1 |
Key Records at a Glance
Record | Achievement |
2018 ICC Under-19 Asia Cup | Title winner with India |
Career-best first-class score | 134 vs Madhya Pradesh |
Domestic dismissals (keeper) | 204 across formats |
IPL Player-of-the-Match | 66 off 47 vs Mumbai Indians, IPL 2022 |
IPL franchises represented | 3 (Rajasthan Royals, Royal Challengers Bengaluru, Gujarat Titans) |
Coaching pedigree | Trained by Raj Kumar Sharma, Virat Kohli’s childhood coach |
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FAQS❓
He plays for Gujarat Titans, who signed him at his base price of ₹30 lakh ahead of IPL 2025, having previously played for Rajasthan Royals (2020–2021) and Royal Challengers Bengaluru (2022–2024).
He has played for Sunrisers Hyderabad (2018–2021), Delhi Capitals (2022–2024), and is currently with Chennai Super Kings (2025–present).
He trained under Raj Kumar Sharma at his academy in Paschim Vihar, West Delhi — the same coach who developed Virat Kohli from childhood — after moving to Delhi from Uttarakhand at age 11.
No, as of 2026 Rawat has not received a senior India call-up, despite winning the 2018 ICC Under-19 Asia Cup and building a solid domestic record for Delhi.
His standout IPL innings remains 66 off 47 balls against Mumbai Indians in 2022, which earned him his maiden Player-of-the-Match award while playing for Royal Challengers Bengaluru.
