DINDIGUL: Jones Tuti Patriots have had a roller-coaster journey in the third edition of Tamil Nadu Premier League (TNPL).They’ve won three from five matches, but they have not defended anything below 180. Generally, the most successful team in a tournament boasts of balance.
In the last two seasons, Tuti was one such team, dominating with both bat and ball.This year, with the addition of R Sai Kishore, R Sathish, and Malolan Rangarajan, the team looked strong on paper. But as the tournament progressed, their weaknesses have been exposed.
The batting-heavy side has not found a player who can fill the shoes of all-rounder Washington Sundar, who was ruled out of the tournament due to a right-ankle injury. They miss someone who can stabilise their top-order (highest run-getter last season with 459) and provide crucial breakthroughs (second-best bowler with 15 wickets).
Out of the three matches they won, Tuti have batted first in two, scoring 191 and 182. In the other, they chased down a decent target of 167. The ever-dependable Kaushik Gandhi has led their batting arsenal by aggregating 218 runs in six outings. At the top, his partner S Dinesh — who was expected to perform well, coming in place of Washington — has done justice to his selection. He has scored 195 runs in six matches with a strike rate of 142.34. The southpaw has stepped up when Gandhi has failed to score.
No doubt, their willow-wielders have lived up to their reputations. But Tuti’s bowling burden has been shouldered solely by fast bowler V Athisayaraj Davidson, who is also the leading wicket-taker this season with 11 scalps. Even then, his economy of 9.15 is hurting the team.
A player like Sai Kishore — who topped the bowling charts last season with 17 wickets with a brilliant economy of 5.7 — has not made a great impact this year. The left-arm-orthodox spinner has picked up six wickets with an unimpressive average of 25.67. The only bowler in Tuti to have an economy rate under seven is M Ganesh Moorthi, but his inability to pick up wickets has been a concern. Malolan has looked less threatening, with only three wickets to show.
Though it was not a one-man show in bowling last season, a player like Washington would have been a vital cog, especially in the middle overs. Tuti had taken 58 wickets that period last season, the highest by a team. This time hasn’t been the same.
On Wednesday at NPR College in Natham, they failed once more, while defending 157 against Ruby Trichy Warriors. Those cracks had surfaced once again.
srinidhi.pr@newindianexpress.com
Brief scores: Jones Tuti Patriots 157/7 in 20 ovs (Nidhish 41; Sonu 2/25, Tamilkumaran 2/28) lost to Ruby Trichy Warriors 158/3 in 19 ovs (Shankar 51, Indrajith 50 n.o; Ganesh 2/30).