“I feel like I missed out on 1000 runs last year, and this year that’s something I’m targeting,” he told Cricinfo. “It’s a landmark. It means you’ve had a great season. My coach scolded me for missing out because you won’t often have the opportunity or privilege to reach that milestone in a career. I’m realising it now.
“But nothing changes this season. At the end of the day, I feel runs are the only thing that will take you forward. In order to play Test cricket for India, I feel you need to keep piling on the runs and ensure that you’re in the scheme of things.”
In Devdutt Padikkal’s absence, Smaran walked in to bat at 130 for 4, and quickly saw the lower-order collapse around him. At 197 for 8, Rest of India’s lead was just 156. Like he’d done in the first innings, where he scored a bulk of his 68 after the fall of the seventh wicket, Smaran played with an aggressive tempo to bring up his seventh first-class century in only his 20th game.
Smaran ended day 3 unbeaten on 126 to take Rest of India’s lead to 265 with two wickets still remaining. “I think it’s right up there because of the situation, given that it’s an Irani Trophy game and I was batting with the tail,” Smaran said. “The situation also demanded a certain style of game, and I’m glad that I could get my team out of a situation. Hopefully, in the next two days, we can really get a game out of it and bowl them out.”
Smaran’s maturity shone through in both his manner of batting with the lower order, as well as how he views competition around him. There’s a school of thought that Smaran was unlucky to miss out on an India A berth. But he doesn’t look at it that way and is pragmatic about how selections work.
“I think I’m not really expecting anything,” he said. “I’m not expecting any call-ups from India A. Honestly, I’m just looking to score as many runs as possible, help my team and win every trophy that we have, and just focus on what I have in front of me. I can’t think about what can happen in the future. It’s not in my hands.
“I think the more volume of runs I keep piling on, the better it is for me as well as the team I’m going to be playing for. So presently, that’s the only focus. But yes, it’s a very good start for me to the season. Before heading into the Ranji Trophy, it always feels good to come into the season with some volume of runs. The goal doesn’t change. Even in the Ranji Trophy, my goal is to score 1000 runs and be back-to-back on top [of the run-getters’ list].”
He’s been able to put that, as well as a few other inputs from the coaches, into practice ahead of the 2026-27 season.
“So I think that one-and-a-half weeks at the CoE really helped me get back into the red-ball rhythm because it was a long gap. The last game prior to that was the Ranji Trophy final. Obviously, with my personal coach back at home, we had a lot of sessions and open nets as well. That also really helped me to be prepared and look forward to the Duleep Trophy.”
“Even in red-ball games, there are situations where you have to take on bowlers, like today, when you’re batting with the tail and you still need to get six or seven runs [per over] and look for a boundary. So I think those situations still come into the red-ball aspect as well.
“It’s not only about taking time and batting. It’s still about putting pressure on the bowlers and seeing how you can get your boundaries in every situation. So I think, yes, the white-ball aspect and the white-ball game of mine also came into play during this game, especially given that I was batting with the tail.
There is always a gap between even the most prolific run-scorers in domestic cricket and the next level, the international level. Smaran is keen to bridge that gap. But for now, the target is to just keep scoring.
Shashank Kishore is a senior correspondent at Cricinfo