Hrishikesh Hemant Kanitkar is a former Indian first-class cricketer and a domestic cricket coach. A left-handed middle-order batsman and occasional right-arm off-break bowler, he represented India in limited-overs cricket in the late 1990s and early 2000s, and had a long first-class career primarily with Maharashtra and Rajasthan in the Ranji Trophy. He is widely remembered for striking the winning boundary against Pakistan in the final of the 1997–98 Independence Cup at Dhaka.
| Hrishikesh Kanitkar — Key facts | |
|---|---|
| Full name | Hrishikesh Hemant Kanitkar |
| Born | 14 November 1974, Pune, Maharashtra |
| Batting | Left-handed |
| Bowling | Right-arm off-break |
| Role | Middle-order batsman |
| Domestic teams | Maharashtra, Rajasthan |
| National team | India (Tests and ODIs) |
| Family | Son of Hemant Kanitkar, former India Test cricketer |
| Later role | Cricket coach (domestic teams and India women) |
Background
Kanitkar was born into a cricketing family in Pune. His father, Hemant Kanitkar, played two Tests for India in the 1970s and was a long-serving Maharashtra batsman. Hrishikesh came up through age-group cricket in Maharashtra and made his first-class debut for the state in the Ranji Trophy in the early 1990s.
Domestic career
Kanitkar built his reputation as a dependable left-handed batsman in the Ranji Trophy. After several seasons with Maharashtra, he moved to Rajasthan, where he played a leading role and captained the side. Under his captaincy, Rajasthan won the Ranji Trophy in 2010–11, defeating Baroda in the final, and retained the title in 2011–12 by beating Tamil Nadu, marking a notable period in the state's cricket history.
Across his first-class career he scored multiple centuries and accumulated several thousand runs in the Ranji Trophy and other domestic competitions, also contributing useful off-spin in the longer format.
International career
Kanitkar made his One Day International debut for India in 1997–98 and played a small number of Tests in 1999–2000. His international appearances were intermittent, and he was used largely as a middle-order batsman in limited-overs cricket.
1997–98 Independence Cup final
In the triangular Independence Cup final at the Bangabandhu National Stadium in Dhaka in January 1998, India chased down a target set by Pakistan in a high-scoring match. Kanitkar, batting in the lower middle order, hit a boundary off the penultimate ball of the innings to seal a narrow Indian victory. The shot remains the moment most associated with his career.
Coaching career
After retiring from playing, Kanitkar moved into coaching. He has worked as a batting coach and head coach with various domestic teams in the Ranji Trophy circuit and in the Indian Premier League system. He has also served in coaching roles with the India women's team set-up, including stints as batting coach, drawing on his experience as a senior domestic batsman.
Significance
Kanitkar is regarded as one of the most accomplished domestic batsmen of his generation, particularly noted for leading Rajasthan to back-to-back Ranji Trophy titles. Within Indian cricketing memory, his name is closely linked with the boundary that won the 1998 Dhaka final against Pakistan, an early high point in India's late-1990s limited-overs rivalries.
Related topics
- Hemant Kanitkar
- Maharashtra cricket team
- Rajasthan cricket team
- Ranji Trophy
- India national cricket team
- India women's national cricket team
- 1997–98 Independence Cup
References
- Player profile entries on major cricket statistics databases.
- Board of Control for Cricket in India and state association records relating to Maharashtra and Rajasthan cricket.
- Contemporary match reports of the 1998 Independence Cup final at Dhaka.