Laxmipathy Balaji has an interesting responsibility in the Tamil Nadu cricket contingent as a player-cum-bowling coach.
“More of a guide,” he says with a smile. He would, however, be tempted to pick himself for the Group ‘B’ Ranji Trophy contest against Madhya Pradesh here from Thursday.
The green tinge and promise of bounce and ‘carry’ on the pitch at the scenic Emerald Heights International School ground sets up a stage that Balaji has loved to exploit in his career.
He has reason to make up his mind to help Tamil Nadu keep the momentum gained from the invigorating victory against Baroda at home in the season opener with left-arm spinner Rahil Shah playing a decisive role with nine wickets to his credit.
Madhya Pradesh, riding on a brilliant century by Bhopal-based Aditya Shrivastava (169), defied Uttar Pradesh’s designs on a placid track at Moradabad and shared two points since the first innings was not completed.
“Aditya has superb concentration and his cricket sense is exemplary,” said MP captain Devendra Bundela on the talented opener.
Bundela, 38, should know having figured in 140 first-class We matches since his debut 20 years ago.
Motivated bunchShrivastava, 22, just four first-class matches old, signifies the new spirit in the MP camp. Bundela explains.
“The team is highly motivated. We have set targets but want to take it match by match. We want MP to do well and I am confident.
“The domestic circuit has changed a lot. I have seen both eras, when domestic cricket was dominated by spinners and now we see more seamer-friendly pitches. You have to have good technique to survive.”
Technique is TN captain Abhinav Mukund’s strong point as he strives to make a mark and look to grab a place in the Indian opening order. TN, for long, has promised but not delivered,
“It is good if we are expected to perform year after year. It also means we are producing good talent to be in the reckoning.
“We have been winning matches from nowhere but the big one is awaited.”
Leading a bunch of youngsters, Mukund acknowledges the combination is raring to go.
“There is a lot of change in the team’s attitude with the youngsters around.
“The dressing room atmosphere is really good. We now have to translate the talent into on-field performances.”
The pitch holds the key. The rival skippers believe batsmen would play a critical part. The bowlers are ready too.
The teams (from):
Tamil Nadu: Abhinav Mukund (capt), K. Bharath Shankar, B. Aparajith, Dinesh Karthik, B. Indrajith, J. Koisik, R. Prasanna, M. Rangarajan, L. Vignesh, Rahil Shah, D.T. Chandrasekhar, J. Kaushik, K. Gandhi, Aswin Crist, M. Mohammad and L. Balaji.
Madhya Pradesh: Devendra Bundela (capt), Naman Ojha, Aditya Shrivastava, Jalaj Saxena, Rajat Patidar, Mohnish Mishra, Udit Birla, Harpreet Singh, Rameez Khan, Ankit Sharma, Mihir Hirwani, Ishwar Pandey, Puneet Datey, Yogesh Rawat, Avesh Khan and Ankit Dane.
