TNPL: Kovai loss underlines Madurai’s dependence on Karthik

It was clear that the team was dependent on him and they did not have anyone to look up to once he made an exit after in the very first over off K Vignesh, after making only one run.

MS Dhoni was in attendance for the TNPL match on Saturday | V Karthik Alagu B

TIRUNELVELI: Sixty One, 17, 59, 4, 80 not out, 85 not out. These were the scores of Siechem Madurai Panthers’ former skipper KB Arun Karthik before their Tamil Nadu Premier League (TNPL season three) clash against Lyca Kovai Kings on Saturday in Tirunelveli.

It was clear that the team was dependent on him and they did not have anyone to look up to once he made an exit after in the very first over off K Vignesh, after making only one run.

The right-hander has hit 307 runs so far, best for Madurai and second highest this season. He has scored 28.01 per cent of the team’s runs in the group stage. Last season, he’d scored 30.82 per cent of team’s runs, finished as Madurai’s highest run-getter.

Even in the two matches when Karthik did not have a good outing — 17 and 4 against Chepauk Super Gillies and VB Kanchi Veerans — Shijit Chandran, X Thalaivan Sargunam and J Koushik made up. But Madurai looked helpless without Karthik against Kovai’s bowling attack.

They lost three wickets in first six overs and set the record of lowest powerplay score (25/3) this season. Even skipper D Rohit too continued his poor run, scoring only four off eight deliveries.Little help down the order from J Kousik (32 n.o) and Varun Chakravarthy (20 n.o) helped Madurai Panthers finish with 103/8 in 20 overs.

Having already qualified for the knockout stages, a victory would have helped them stay inside the top-two. Now, that seems a little doubtful.

Dhoni in attendance

Coming back after India’s tour of UK, MS Dhoni for the first time made his way to Tirunelveli to watch Kovai take on Madurai. In the first two editions of TNPL, Dhoni has been a regular feature. But this is the first time he has gone outside Chennai. “It is where India Cements started. It is the perfect time to personally come and congratulate the fans. CSK has some die-hard fans, especially in this part of the country. They supported us even when we were not a part of IPL.”

Brief scores: Siechem Madurai Panthers 103/8 in 20 ovs (Koushik 32 n.o; K Vignesh 2/23) lost to Lyca Kovai Kings 107/2 in 17.2 ovs (R Rohith 34 n.o).