Tamil Nadu keen to continue all-round show in Ranji Trophy

The team played eight matches, won two, lost one and drew five matches to finish on 26 points, on level with Gujarat and four points behind powerhouse Mumbai. 

Ahead of the quarter-final, the team has earned a well-deserved break to regroup themselves and continue the good form into the business end of  the tournament. After a disappointing last season, the team has bounced back well to give a fitting reply to their critics. 

Fielding coach A Avinash, who has been an integral part of the support staff, said the team is well placed to continue the good work. “The team is gelling well. Everyone knows their role, be it in batting, bowling or fielding. We have practised well in all three departments of the game and have taken care of all nitty gritties,” he said. 

The Coimbatore-based coach said the plan after the loss to Mumbai was not to panic and take it match by match. “Barring the match against Mumbai and Uttar Pradesh, we have been in control in most of our matches. It has been a performance above par. We didn’t hurry too much into our plans and we wanted to take it match by match and session by session,” he added. 

Avinash said the team coach Hrishikesh Kanitkar made the right choice in appointing Abhinav Mukund as the captain and lauded the southpaw’s spirit. “Mukund is a fighter. He is very cool and composed as a captain. He motivates the bowlers and knows what exactly he wants from them. He is a good communicator and conveys his ideas very well to the bowler. He has a knack of putting it across in a way the player understands and able to deliver for his captain and the team,” he added. 

The fielding coach said dropping Baba Aparajith from the playing XI was one of the toughest decisions the skipper and the support staff had to take and praised Mukund for handling the situation extremely well. “Mukund has taken tough decisions. When he had to drop Aparajith from the playing XI, he did that in the team’s best interest. He felt that giving Apar a break would enable him to recoup himself and identify the areas where he had to work on. Being the expert communicator, he sent across the message very well and Aparajith concurred with his skipper’s opinion. The break did do a world of good for him as he came back and scored well-compiled 60-odd runs against Gujarat, without giving too many chances for the opposition and living dangerously,” he added. 

With senior pro Dinesh Karthik in the team, Avinash said it was easy for youngsters in the team to look up for motivation and learn in a quick manner. “DK is an asset to the team. As a senior player, he gives his inputs. He has played at the highest level and knows his job. He can score at  ease and is a big bonus to have someone with so much experience in the team guiding us,” the coach added. 

While the team has been excellent in batting and bowling, fielding has been top notch too and Avinash said he was enjoying his stint as an integral member of the side. “Fielding sessions have been made compulsory in the team. We push everyone hard. We concentrate on high and flat catches, run-out and work a lot on fielding techniques. We have been top notch in our preparation and as support staff, I do my homework diligently and come up with different fielding drills and strategies that helps our team in a better way,” he added.