CHENNAI: Ruby Trichy Warriors coach Tinu Yohanan urges his wards to concentrate on the middle-overs as they look to spoil Lyca Kovai Kings’ playoff hopes on Monday. Despite having the likes of Bharath Shankar and Baba Indrajith at the top, the Warriors have found it difficult to maintain momentum and Yohanan believes it’s the reason the team finds itself at seventh in the eight-team table with just one win from six matches so far.
“Middle overs are crucial for batting and bowling. Bharath and Indrajith have given us good starts. But in the middle overs our batsmen have been found wanting. We need to consolidate and will go all out against Kovai,’’ said Yohanan. A Trichy win can spoil Kovai’s playoff chances of making it to the playoff. On Saturday, Kovai just about managed to beat VB Thiruvallur Veerans, thanks to a no-ball in the last over of the innings.
“This is the time (middle overs) when we need to consolidate and while bowling, check the run flow. In the last game M Vijay gave a good start, middle-order batsman Akshay Srinivasan gave good support to Anirudh Sita Ram and we won a thriller. One thing we have learnt is that a guy who does well in the middle overs should stay till the end. Our bowling wasn’t good in the middle overs. We need to improve,’’ said R Prasanna, assistant coach of Kovai.
This season, most teams have been caught wanting in the middle overs and fallen short of executing plans. They have largely maintained a pattern in the middle, using a left-arm spinner and an offie.
ashok.v@newindianexpress.com