More than just a name: Kerala pacer Eden Apple Tom stuns Vidarbha in Ranji Trophy final

The moment Eden Apple Tom was listed in Kerala’s team sheet, everyone became an onomastic, digging the roots of the name. Curiosity around his name swirled: “Is it Eeden or Aiden, or Edhan or Edan?” “Is he from a religious background?” “Who is Apple, his second name, or his father’s name?” Convoluted associations with Garden of Eden and Eden Gardens too were not far behind. Eden himself must have been asked to detail the etymology of his name a hundred times, by his friends, teammates, teachers, colleagues, coaches and journalists. He had to clarify: “My name is Eden. And Apple is my fathers’s name.” The name, phonetically spelled, is Adhan, the Malayalam equivalent of Eden.

On Thursday, he ensured that the onlookers remembered his bowling too, that there is more to him than his name. He designed the right-arm seamer’s perfect ball from around the stumps to devour Yash Rathod, Vidarbha’s batting figurehead, and catalysed Kerala’s second-day fightback.

The third ball of his first over of the second spell, he conjured a ball so dreamy that Rathod’s lips gasped into a perfectly round ‘O’. Just 66 runs away from scaling the 1000-run peak in the season, Rathod nicked a ball outside the off-stump, like a firefly drawn irresistibly into the light. He could have shouldered arms, if only he had a divine premonition of the ball’s wicked path. It angled inward from around the stumps, curling a smidgeon as it reached him. But in exemplary form, the inward shape did not trick his eyes into turning leg-side. He second-guessed the away-swing bluff, the seam canting towards the first slip was a giveaway, except that he did not expect the ball to seam away so deviously late or subtly. Or that, Eden had managed to draw him further across the off stump (or where he imagined his off-stump was), without him realising it and cajoled him into edging a ball that he could have left alone.

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It was quick-kill. Kerala had little cushion to lay elaborate traps. So, the first two balls to him were full—the first on the fourth stump and the next on off-stump, tailing into him. The third ball, Rathod listened to the crack of doom.

Nagpur: Kerala’s players celebrate a wicket on the first day of the Ranji Trophy final cricket match between Vidarbha and Kerala, at Vidarbha Cricket Association (VCA) Stadium, in Nagpur, Wednesday, Feb. 26, 2025. (PTI Photo) Nagpur: Kerala’s players celebrate a wicket on the first day of the Ranji Trophy final cricket match between Vidarbha and Kerala, at Vidarbha Cricket Association (VCA) Stadium, in Nagpur, Wednesday, Feb. 26, 2025. (PTI Photo)

The schemer was captain Sachin Baby. Every time Eden returned to the run-up point, with hurried strides, his fingers flicking an imaginary ball, Sachin would sidle up and whisper some advice. Eden, 19 and fresh-faced, who was four years old when Sachin debuted, would vigorously nod his head like an obedient pupil would a mentor. As he broke into his long and brisk run-up, the usually quiet Baby would scream: “Mone, polilku!” Son, have a blast.

A young Eden was a pacer with precious gifts that his academy coach in Dubai, and former captain Sony Cheruvathoor, advised him to relocate to Thiruvananthapuram so that he could professionally embrace the game. His father, Apple, had to quit his job in the Dubai Airport, but Cheruvathoor convinced him that relocation would be worth the sacrifice. Recollects Cheruvathoor: “I remember a young boy at the academy, (in Dubai) he might have been 8 or 9. He was quick for his age, and had a great willingness to learn. I saw some genuine talent in him and when I returned to Thiruvananthapuram, I asked him to relocate.”

A diamond in the rough, he required polishing. Like he was bowling off the wrong foot, the action put a lot of strain on lower back and knees. But by 15, Sony and coaches at the Love All Sports Academy sculpted him into a bowler good enough to summon the attention of then state coach Tinu Yohannan. He was invited to the senior camp, where he impressed one and all. A year later, Tinu handed him his maiden Ranji cap, against Meghalaya. Having made a habit of making first impressions, he struck with his first ball, grabbed six wickets in the game and was adjudged man of the match. By the time he played his next game, against Gujarat, he was already a household name in his State. “From a young age, he had a lovely in-swinger. But he wanted the out-swinger too, and worked incredibly hard to develop it,” says Cheruvathoor.

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A stress fracture on the lower back decelerated his progress, but he not only recovered from a potentially career-ending injury, but also has returned without losing much of his pace and vim. Cheruvathoor credits it to his mental strength as well as the strong fundamentals of the game. He has a gliding run-up that gives him the impetus to produce nippy pace, a frictionless leap and a fluent action that sustains the momentum. He can be both quicker and bouncier—like Ajit Agarkar—than the batsmen think he could be. Akshay Wadkar felt the sting of his extra bounce. He wafted at a short ball, but it bounced more than he judged and edged behind. It was an equally important wicket, as the experienced hand was in the mood for quick runs that would have dragged Kerala out of the game.

He is far from a finished product—rough edges linger, scattergun properties remain—but Eden gave Kerala a glimpse of the promised land. And ensured those that remember his name would recollect the dream ball to Rathod too.

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