Saransh Jain made his India debut in the second Test against Sri Lanka at the SSC ground in Colombo. The 33-year-old all-rounder received his India Test cap after doing well in domestic cricket and on India A’s recent tour of Sri Lanka. With his debut, Jain also became the oldest Indian player to make his Test debut in the 21st century. However, there is another interesting fact about his career. Jain played for India before ever playing a single IPL match. He is not the only Indian cricketer to achieve this. Murali Vijay and Mohammed Shami also made their India debuts before playing in the IPL.
Murali Vijay made his India debut in 2008
Former India opener Murali Vijay is the first name on this list. Vijay made his Test debut against Australia in Nagpur in 2008, almost a year before he played his first IPL match.
Vijay was picked by Chennai Super Kings in the 2009 IPL auction for ₹12 lakh. He later played for Delhi Capitals and Punjab Kings as well. The right-handed batter played 106 IPL matches, scoring 2,619 runs, including two centuries and 13 fifties. However, his biggest success for India came in Test cricket.
Vijay played 61 Tests for India and scored 3,982 runs at an average of 38.28. He became an important opener for India during his international career.
Mohammed Shami made his India debut in 2013
Mohammed Shami also made his India debut before playing his first IPL match. The fast bowler played his first international game for India against Pakistan in an ODI in Delhi in January 2013. A few months later, in April 2013, Kolkata Knight Riders gave Shami his IPL debut. He played three matches for KKR that season.
Shami later represented Delhi, Punjab, Gujarat, Hyderabad and Lucknow in the IPL. He has played 132 IPL matches and taken 145 wickets.
For India, Shami has been one of the team’s leading fast bowlers. He has played 64 Tests, 108 ODIs and 25 T20Is, taking 229, 206 and 27 wickets, respectively.
Saransh Jain made his India debut in 2026
Saransh Jain is the latest name to join this special list. The 33-year-old all-rounder made his India debut against Sri Lanka in the second Test in Colombo.
Jain has played 54 first-class matches, scoring 2,223 runs at an average of 31.75. His record also includes two centuries and 14 fifties. With the ball, he has taken 188 wickets at an average of 27.30.
He has also played 47 List A matches, scoring 553 runs and taking 38 wickets. In 20 T20 matches, Jain has scored runs and taken 18 wickets at an average of 19.11.
Why did Saransh Jain never play in the IPL?
Jain was shortlisted for the IPL auction in 2024, 2025 and 2026, but no franchise picked him in any of the three auctions.
His strong domestic record, however, kept him in the selectors’ plans. During the 2025-26 Ranji Trophy season, Jain scored 518 runs at an average of 57.55 and took 30 wickets at an average of 20.43.
His good performances in domestic cricket and for India A finally earned him an India call-up. His Test debut against Sri Lanka has now given him a place in a small group of Indian players who played international cricket before ever appearing in the IPL.