কুণাল সিং রাঠোর

The first cricketer from Kota to get an IPL contract, Kunal Singh Rathore is a left-handed wicketkeeper batter who made his debut for Rajasthan in all formats in late 2022.

Having taken a liking to cricket very early in life thanks to his visits to a local academy along with his brother, Rathore used to enjoy fast bowling and looked up to Sreesanth whose action he tried to emulate. But realising that wicketkeepers are given more opportunities with the bat, and fast bowlers less so, he drifted towards being a wicketkeeper.

Rathore made an impact in his very first season for Rajasthan, scoring 147 runs at an average of 36.75 and strike rate of 128.94 in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. Subsequently, he was picked up by the Rajasthan Royals ahead of IPL 2023. While he didn't get to feature in a single game in the tournament, he did put up impressive performances in the next domestic season, scoring his first century in Ranji Trophy and accumulating 250 runs in Vijay Hazare Trophy at an average of 41.66, playing his part in Rajasthan's journey to the final.

However, he couldn't keep his form going and was left out after a few low scores in the 2024/25 Ranji Trophy.