Adilabad: Himateja Kodimela, 22, started playing cricket in the gallis of Adilabad and has now become the first cricketer from the undivided Adilabad district to play in Ranji Trophy matches on behalf of the Hyderabad Cricket Association (HCA).
Himateja, a left-hander, played his debut Ranji match against Gujarat on Gymkhana Grounds on October 11. He scored 66 runs in the first innings and 29 runs in the second innings and emerged as the highest scorer in the match. He will play against Uttarakhand in Dehradun on October 18.
Himateja captained the team and scored 299 runs in a match against Baroda in the under-23 Col C.K. Naidu Cricket Tournament last year and was selected for the BCCI training camp of National Cricket Academy in Surat in 2024. He was the second-highest scorer in that tournament. He then represented HCA in the Buchibabu Invitational Tournament in Tamil Nadu in 2024, where HCA won the cup.
Talking to Deccan Chronicle, Himateja said he was anxious but not tense about playing his first Ranji match since he was prepared mentally. He said his role model was cricketer Yuvraj Singh who played for the World Cup 2011 despite combating cancer.
Himateja said he is now focusing on being selected for the Duleep Trophy and later for the Indian ‘A’ team. He added that he did a lot of hard work to be selected for the Ranji Trophy, which is considered a stepping stone for a professional cricket career.
Himateja studied in Adilabad town up to SSC, did his intermediate at a private college in Hyderabad where he is completing his BTech while undergoing cricket coaching at Nexgen Residential Cricket Academy.
“My parents Madhusudan and Kameshwari, who are teachers, always stood by me on seeing my passion towards cricket,” said Himateja, adding that he still enjoys playing with local players whenever he visits Adilabad. He started playing cricket in Adilabad when he was nine and was trained by local coach Jayendra Pataskar. His uncle Venugopal is taking care of his cricket career.
Poloji Vidya Sagar, a resident of Vidyanagar Colony in Adilabad, recalled Himateja as a child who played cricket with his friends in the colony and said they were proud of him for reaching the national level in cricket.
