TN is ready for Ranji: Vijay Shankar

“We are not sure how the season will pan out. The Buchi Babu tournament is our first tournament in the season and I think it would be a great chance for us to start our Ranji Trophy preparation,” said Vijay Shankar, who captained Tamil Nadu to two One-Day titles last season.

The preparatory camp for the tourney has not yet been started as the TNCA league is still going on. However, the captain believes it will not be a major problem.

“The TNCA league has given us good experience and all of the players are in top form. I think the tournament (Buchi Babu Tournament) will be good exposure and help us to prepare for the Ranji Trophy.

After the tournament there will be a camp for Ranji Trophy,” he said. Tamil Nadu team is in Group ‘C’ along with Mumbai, Andhra, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha, Baroda and Tripura. Asked about the chances of progressing as group leaders to knockout phases, Vijay explained that a lot of work had to be done. “Nothing is easy in the Ranji Trophy. Our aim is to reach the final and to achieve that we need to beat almost all the team. So, I think only hard work pays off and we should be prepared to go well. We must be consistent throughout the tourney.

“I think the present format of home and away matches will be a boost for us. We are prepared to play in any condition,” he said.

“Our coach Hrishikesh Kanitkar did a good job last year. He is a great motivator and we had an astounding campaign last year,” added Vijay Shankar.