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Raring to go
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CRICKET The Ranji Trophy season is about to get under way. Karnataka has its first encounter with Mumbai on November 3 under a new coach, Vijay Bharadwaj
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Away from the glare of Twenty20 heroics and the resultant media frenzy, a slew of first class cricketers all over the country will now be touching their cricket kit with an air of reverence. The Ranji season is about to unfold and players will repres
ent the various States in near empty stadiums, with just their team-mates, cricket writers, a few hangers on and may be the odd stray dog for company.
It is a lonely path but one that promises a national cap provided you can pile a mountain of runs or grab a flurry of wickets. For veterans it is about proving they still have some cricket left in them besides donning the elder statesman’s role. For former champions Karnataka, this season is all about reiterating that the state’s cricketing conveyor belt is still churning talent.
“We have 35 probables now and I am sure the top 15 from this will eventually form the State team. They have it in them to go all the way and win the trophy. I am not saying this just because I am associated with them. I can see the hunger in their eyes and some of them who are making a comeback are extra keen to do well,” says former cricketer Vijay Bharadwaj, who has now been appointed state coach after earlier appointee Rajesh Kamat joined the rebel Indian Cricket League. The probables are now training under Bharadwaj at the Infosys campus in Mysore. “When we won the Ranji Trophy in the Nineties, besides having a bunch of great players, we also had this sense of joy in seeing each other succeed. Let us be honest, we are not going to get players of the calibre of Anil Kumble, Javagal Srinath, Rahul Dravid, Venkatesh Prasad, Sunil Joshi and a few others, often. It is a cycle. Yes, now besides Kumble and Dravid, we only have Robin Uthappa playing for India but I am sure the cycle will change and more players will emerge. There is no mistaking the talent in our State,” Bharadwaj says.
Karnataka is in a tough pool – Group A. It has teams such as current Ranji champions Mumbai, Tamil Nadu and Delhi in the fray. Does that rankle Bharadwaj? “I see it as a positive thing. If you are in a tough group, you just cannot be complacent and take it easy. If you want to win the Ranji Trophy, you have to play good cricket to get the better of tough sides. I think we do have a bunch that can take on the best. Besides the regulars like Barrington and Joshi who have come in after playing in England, we also have players like Sudhindra Shinde, who is scoring runs and itching to make a comeback. Seamer N.C. Aiyappa has recovered well from injury and wants to prove himself.” “We are training at the Infosys campus for 12 days and the focus is on cricket. Even the fitness sessions are tuned into cricket. We also plan to have players like Kumble and Gundappa Viswanath come and talk to the probables. Our players represent a great side like Karnataka and they need to understand a bit of its cricketing history. Our preparation is good starting with the practise matches against Bengal and now with this camp, it has progressed well.”
It is time now for the long season ahead. As Karnataka gears up for its first match this season away against Mumbai from November 3 to 6, fans in the State are hoping the team will go all the way and bring the trophy home. The finals are scheduled for January 16 to 20, 2008.
PHOTOS: BHAGYA PRAKASH K.
Straight bat Former Indian test cricketer Vijay Bharadwaj has been appointed Karnataka coach. The players to watch for this season are comeback men — seamer N.C. Aiyappa who is returning from injury and batsman Sudhindra Shinde
Last year, Yere Goud’s men stumbled in the semi-finals against Bengal at Eden Gardens. Hopefully this time around there will be no mistakes.
K.C. VIJAYA KUMAR
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