# Services cricket team

The Services cricket team plays in the Ranji Trophy, the main domestic first-class cricket competition in India. Under the auspices of the Services Sports Control Board, they represent the Indian Armed Forces. Their home ground is the Palam A Stadium, Palam Air Force Base, New Delhi.

## Records

The Services team first played in the Ranji Trophy in 1949–50. They played in the North Zone of the competition until 2001–02, and have played in the Plate Group and other lower-ranked groups since 2002–03, except for one season, where they played in the Elite Group, during 2005–06. Their strongest period was the 1950s: between 1950–51 and 1959–60 they reached the semi-finals six times and the final twice, losing to Bombay in 1956–57 by an innings, and to Baroda in 1957–58, also by an innings.
As of February 2024, Services had played 365 first-class matches, with 96 wins, 124 losses, and 145 draws. 33 of their victories have been over Jammu and Kashmir. Their highest first-class score is 250 not out by Yashpal Singh against Tripura in 2012–13. The best bowling figures are 8 for 37 by Gokul Inder Dev against Jammu and Kashmir in 1968–69.
Services reached the semi-finals of the Vijay Hazare Trophy for the first time in the 2021–22 season. Their best finish in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy was in the 2019–20 season, where they finished third in their group with 4 wins and 2 losses.
Services set the world record for the highest successful run chase in first-class cricket without losing a wicket when they chased 376 runs against Odisha in the group stage in the 2024–25 Ranji Trophy. It was also the second-highest successful fourth-innings run-chase in the history of the Ranji Trophy.

## Honours

* Ranji Trophy
** Runners-up (2): 1956–57, 1957–58

## Notable players

Services players who have played Test cricket for India, along with year of Test debut:
* Hemu Adhikari (1947) (primarily played for Baroda)
* Kanwar Rai Singh (1947 (primarily played for Southern Punjab)
* Bal Dani (1952)
* Chandrasekhar Gadkari (1953)
* Narain Swamy (1955)
* Surendra Nath (1958)
* Apoorva Sengupta (1959)
* V. M. Muddiah (1959)

## Current squad

| Name | Birth date | Birthplace | Batting style | Bowling style | Notes |
| Batsmen ||||||
| Rajat Paliwal | (1991-12-24) 24 December 1991 (age 33) | Sonepat, HR | Right-handed | Right-arm off-break | First-class Captain |
| Ravi Chauhan | (1993-09-17) 17 September 1993 (age 31) | New Delhi, DL | Right-handed | Right-arm leg-break | |
| Shubham Rohilla | (1998-03-10) 10 March 1998 (age 26) | Rohtak, HR | Left-handed | Right-arm leg break | |
| Suraj Vashisht | (2001-07-27) 27 July 2001 (age 23) | Delhi, DL | Right-handed | Right-arm off-break | |
| Kunwar Pathak | (1998-11-23) 23 November 1998 (age 26) | Amritsar, PB | Left-handed | Right-arm off-break | |
| Anshul Gupta | (1989-09-20) 20 September 1989 (age 35) | Ghaziabad, UP | Right-handed | Right-arm off-break | |
| Vikas Hathwala | (1993-09-06) 6 September 1993 (age 31) | Delhi, DL | Left-handed | Left-arm medium | |
| All-Rounders ||||||
| Arjun Sharma | (1996-05-25) 25 May 1996 (age 28) | Jalandhar, PB | Left-handed | Slow left-arm orthodox | |
| Vineet Dhankhar | (2004-05-03) 3 May 2004 (age 20) | | Right-handed | Right-arm leg break | |
| Nitin Tanwar | (1996-10-09) 9 October 1996 (age 28) | Delhi, DL | Right-handed | Right-arm off break | |
| Wicket-keepers ||||||
| Mohit Ahlawat | (1995-12-25) 25 December 1995 (age 29) | Delhi, DL | Right-handed | | List A & Twenty20 Captain |
| Arun Kumar | (2002-12-06) 6 December 2002 (age 22) | Bhiwani, HR | Right-handed | | |
| Lovekesh Bansal | (1995-08-17) 17 August 1995 (age 29) | Yamuna Nagar, HR | Left-handed | | |
| Spin Bowlers ||||||
| Amit Shukla | (2002-12-28) 28 December 2002 (age 22) | Faizabad, UP | Right-handed | Slow left-arm orthodox | |
| Pulkit Narang | (1994-06-18) 18 June 1994 (age 30) | New Delhi, DL | Right-handed | Right-arm off break | |
| Mohit Rathee | (1999-01-13) 13 January 1999 (age 26) | Rohtak, HR | Right-handed | Right-arm leg break | Plays for Royal Challengers Bengaluru in IPL |
| Pace Bowlers ||||||
| Poonam Poonia | (1994-12-12) 12 December 1994 (age 30) | Sri Ganganagar, RJ | Right-handed | Right-arm medium | |
| Varun Choudhary | (1993-10-26) 26 October 1993 (age 31) | Jammu, JK | Right-handed | Right-arm medium-fast | |
| Nitin Yadav | (1992-11-20) 20 November 1992 (age 32) | Delhi, DL | Right-handed | Right-arm medium | |
| Vishal Gaur | (2001-07-03) 3 July 2001 (age 23) | Meerut, UP | Left-handed | Left-arm medium | |
| Jayant Goyat | (2005-06-24) 24 June 2005 (age 19) | | Right-handed | Right-arm medium | |
| Raj Bahadur | (1993-10-05) 5 October 1993 (age 31) | Allahabad, UP | Left-handed | Left-arm medium | |
| Gaurav Sharma | (1994-07-06) 6 July 1994 (age 30) | Bulandshahr, UP | Right-handed | Right-arm medium | |
Updated as on 30 January 2025