IPL 2025: Who is Aniket Verma, Uncapped SRH Star Who Slammed 74 vs Delhi Capitals in Vizag?

It wasn't the best of days for Sunrisers Hyderabad's explosive batting unit when they took on the Delhi Capitals in an IPL 2025 match at Vizag, but one batter from the 2024 runners-up stood out - Aniket Verma.

Verma was picked by SRH in the IPL 2025 mega auction for his base price of Rs. 30 lakhs and few would have expected him to break into the line-up given the quality they possess.

However, Verma has played both of SRH's opening IPL games of the season and made his mark with a hard-hitting 74 off 41 balls in only his second IPL game.

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Here we take a look at his rapid rise from the Madhya Pradesh Premier League to the IPL.

MPPL's Role in Aniket Verma's Rise

Amazingly, Verma had only played one game of senior-level cricket before he was handed his IPL debut cap by the franchise.

And when he was picked for his base price by SRH in the auction, he had yet to play a game at the senior level.

However, his performances in the Madhya Pradesh Premier League in June 2024 helped bring him to the notice of SRH's scouts.

He played for the Bhopal Leopards in the Madhya Pradesh Premier League, amassing 244 runs in five innings with an impressive strike rate of 205.

His standout performance came when he scored 123 off 41 balls, hitting 13 sixes to lead his team to a total of 278.

And it also led to him being granted a trial by the side - one which he blew out of the park.

How Aniket Verma Aced SRH Trial

Aniket recalled how he was given a number of scenarios to achieve by the franchise and how he went about achieving them.

"First in the PowerPlay, we were told to score 65 in 6 overs. We had to do it in pairs and if we got out, we'd have to sit out of the simulation. We achieved that easily. In the second scenario, we were told to score 85+ in 8 overs. We got that in 4 overs," he told Cricbuzz.

Verma's hunger for runs and the ability to score them quickly helped his case considerably.

"They'd asked us to play the entire six overs (in the first scenario) and I made 72-odd in that. In the second one, I scored 64 out of the 85," he added.

Signing Verma was always going to be a calculated gamble but it was one that has already reaped rewards and added yet another power-hitter to SRH's already-stacked batting line-up.