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Who is Eden Apple Tom? The bowler who dismissed Ruturaj Gaikwad, debuted in Ranji Trophy at 16; story behind his name
Kerala seamer Eden Apple Tom earned plenty of positive attention after dismissing Ruturaj Gaikwad in this year's Ranji Trophy opener.
At 20 years of age, Eden Apple Tom is showing plenty of promise as a seam bowler that Indian development programs must keep an eye on. Blessed with more than just a unique name, Tom has shown his ability to generate good pace and extract plenty from the red ball, as he impressed in the opening showing of this year’s Ranji Trophy with a wicket against Maharashtra.
While his seam bowling teammates MD Nidheesh and Nedumankhuzy Basil found more joy in terms of wickets as they ripped through the top order, Tom is the one who many consider to be a player worth keeping an eye on. His sole wicket would be that of Ruturaj Gaikwad, Maharashtra’s captain, set on 91 – an Indian international, and IPL captain, and no small fish.
Having spent his youth in Dubai and being spotted as a talent while in an academy in the UAE, he relocated to Trivandrum to follow his cricket dreams. He made his debut for Kerala at 16 years old in 2022, taking four wickets in his first innings at the senior first-class level, including a wicket with the very first ball of his senior career.
Eden Tom's comeback from injury setback
However, the quick Eden Apple would find his career hampered by a back injury, which took away time from him, and forced him to deal with a lot of pain despite his youth. He was sent to the NCA to keep track of his injury, and it was revealed to be a stress fracture – an injury which can prove to be so dangerous for fast bowlers.
Eden Apple would then be treated by the same doctors who took charge of Jasprit Bumrah’s recovery from his own series of back injuries. He lost a couple of years on the tough journey back, but it is a testament to his talent and ability that he did find his way back – and came in out of the blue to participate in last year’s Ranji Trophy final, the first time Kerala had reached the championship match of the tournament.
He would take three wickets in the first innings of that match, but Kerala would lose to a first-innings deficit in a tightly fought contest. However, the closer he has crept to the spotlight, the more questions have been raised about his unique name. Is this a biblical allusion, a reference to the famous Eden Gardens? Ultimately, it is quite simple: Apple is his father’s name, and Eden is his. So far, he has provided all the signs to claim that this is a name Indian fans will hear for many years to come.
