Unmukt Chand

Unmukt Chand was born on March 26, 1993, in Delhi, India, to Bharat Chand Thakur and Rajeshwari Chand. He began his early cricket career in Indian domestic circuits, representing the Delhi U-19 team where he scored 499 runs, including two centuries and one half-century. This performance earned him a place in the Delhi senior team, where he scored 151 runs against Railways in the 2010-11 Ranji Trophy, alongside two half-centuries against Mumbai and Saurashtra. Chand accumulated 400 runs in five matches during that period. He also played in the Vinoo Mankad Trophy and Cooch Behar Trophy at the junior level, demonstrating early promise as a right-handed top-order batsman.

Chand’s captaincy career began leading the Delhi U-19 team and subsequently the North Zone U-19 team. He then captained the India Under-19 cricket team in a quadrangular series in Vishakhapatnam, scoring an unbeaten 122 against Sri Lanka and two fifties against Australia and West Indies, ending the tournament with 336 runs. In April 2012, he continued his leadership by guiding India to victory in another quadrangular series in Australia, scoring 94 against England and an unbeaten 112 against Australia in the final. Chand’s most notable achievement came on August 26, 2012, when he captained India to win the ICC Under-19 Cricket World Cup, scoring 111* in the final against Australia. He also played a pivotal role in Delhi’s Vijay Hazare Trophy victory in 2013, scoring 116 in the final. In professional leagues, Chand made his IPL debut for Delhi Daredevils in 2011, later played for Rajasthan Royals in 2014, and was part of the Mumbai Indians team that won the IPL title in 2015. He also excelled in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2012–13, scoring 321 runs with back-to-back centuries. In August 2021, Chand retired from Indian cricket to pursue opportunities in the United States, signing with the Silicon Valley Strikers in Minor League Cricket. He led the Strikers to the championship title in 2021, topping the run-scorers list with 612 runs in 16 innings. His career progression continued with appearances in the Big Bash League for the Melbourne Renegades in 2022, becoming the first Indian male to play in the BBL. He also played for Chattogram Challengers in the Bangladesh Premier League in 2022–23. Currently, he plays for the Los Angeles Knight Riders in Major League Cricket and has a 33.6 run average as of 2025. Chand has also expanded his career into commentary, covering the U-19 Cricket World Cup, Caribbean Premier League for Star Sports, and the Big Bash League in Hindi.