Albert’s Tuti Patriots will be gunning for revenge when they take on a mighty-looking Dindigul Dragons in the first semifinal of the India Cements Tamil Nadu Premier League at the ICL grounds here on Friday.
The Dragons, who had clinched a Super Over thriller against the Patriots in a league match at the same venue earlier this month, would want to keep that on the back of their mind and plan something even more special to tackle the latter.
“We are not going to take them lightly. They are very strong contenders but we are going to start the match afresh as it is a knockout stage,” said Dragons coach M. Venkataramana.
Familiar environsThe former India off-spinner was pleased that his boys have been knocking it around at this venue for some time now. “It’s a definite advantage for us as we got to understand the ground condition, wicket preparation and wind factor much better. It was really helpful in our preparation.”
Subramania Siva, the Dragons skipper, said the wind would certainly play a role. “Playing against the wind makes life difficult for the batsmen.” But the situation will be the same for both teams. He also said they have chalked out a special plan for every opposition player.
The coach pointed out that the toss would be pretty crucial. “The wicket here, towards the fag end, starts aiding the spinners and, it’s going to work to our advantage as our strength is the spin.”
Ashwin could turn outThe big news is Indian spin star Ravichandran Ashwin is also expected to join the team. He may well work magic for the team but Venkataramana was still waiting for his confirmation.
The Patriots may be pleased as well with the likely return of Dinesh Karthik and Abhinav Mukund for the key clash. Also, paceman L. Balaji, who enjoys the privilege of scalping the tournament’s first five-wicket haul, is in roaring form.
But Venkataramana was not a worried man. “We have a good bowling attack. Our bowlers were able to restrict the opposition to 120. Also, the chasing has been good and close. If we stick to our plan which is working well then we don’t have to think anything beyond that. We will continue to stick to our basics and play to our strengths.”
N. Jagadeesan, the Dragons opener and the tournament’s highest run-getter from Coimbatore, is also eagerly looking forward to the match. “I just want to go around and give my best,’ he said.
While the Dragons sweated it out under the early morning skies here, Patriots chose to do the same in the evening at its backyard. It has been quite tiring for the team travelling between different points of the State to play the matches. But the team has a clear plan.
New day, new game“The semifinal is not any different for us. We do not want to give unnecessary importance in the first place. For the team, it will be a new day and a new game tomorrow,” said J.R. Madanagopal, the Patriots coach.
The former Ranji player said the team was aware of the ground condition at Tirunelveli. “We have played a couple of matches there so we have decided to keep it simple and straight.”
With both teams preferring to keep the strategies close to their chest, one can expect a cracker of a contest from the start.
