After Vijay Hazare trophy loss, time for Tamil Nadu to leave comfort zone

TN’s failure should not be blamed on support staff but on players who have taken their place in side for granted.
After winning two titles — Vijay Hazare and Deodhar Trophy last season, TN failed miserably this term. (File photo | EPS)
After winning two titles — Vijay Hazare and Deodhar Trophy last season, TN failed miserably this term. (File photo | EPS)

CHENNAI: Here we are again. Back to the drawing board where Tamil Nadu are standing in front of the mirror and wondering where they went wrong. It is not a new place that they find themselves in. It has happened in the past, particularly after a season where they have played to their potential, and have followed it with a drab season. After all the highs of the last season, where they won two titles — Vijay Hazare and Deodhar Trophy to go with the semifinal finish in Ranji Trophy, this season has been nothing but a let down.

But unlike years before, where association would let heads roll – mostly the support staff –  there is at least some clarity or a good realisation that it is the players who have let the team down this time. There is still a growing belief and enough confidence in Hrishikesh Kanitar being the best man to bring home the Ranji Trophy after flirting with it for 30 years now. Certain quarters in the TNCA and in the selection committee have tried to pass the buck to the coach for this collective failure, but in N Srinivasan, who still holds a strong foot in TNCA, Kanitkar has firm backing.

It’s not that this team keeps changing every now and then. In fact, they have one of the settled group of core players, who have enough experience, but with not many coming through the pipeline, there are growing concerns if some of them are so secured of the spot that they are not ready to come out of their comfort zones. Good teams thrive when there is competition for places as players are bound to step up and deliver. But with hardly anyone knocking the doors of the state-side, even a player who has an average season has no fear of losing his place. Maybe TN should start becoming ruthless, just to teach a hard lesson or two.

For all the talk of Tamil Nadu being one of the powerhouses in domestic cricket, the numbers sadly don’t reflect it. The Ranji Trophy continues to elude them since the 1987-88 season and in that period they have seen some of their rivals win a handful of titles, rebuild the team and achieve the feat again. Even some of the not-so traditional teams like Gujarat, Vidarbha have gone on to win titles, but the team with possibly best infrastructure and the best think-tank, and an association that is ever-ready to provide anything that players demand can’t boast of raising their collars and say, “We are champions.”

While Gujarat and Vidarbha, with limited resources, has built squads, Tamil Nadu has been carving one for so long that it seems like an eternal project. As Tamil Nadu bowed out of the Vijay Hazare Trophy, managing just two wins in the league round, played out in their own backyard, there is a huge disappointment in the corridors of the TNCA.

The coach has already been told to file a detailed report of where it went wrong this season. And instead of just looking at it as just another report, TNCA when presented with the report, has a chance to get the house back in order. The unity and the bonding that the team showed last season was definitely one of the best in recent times.

But, how and where did the same bunch lose is the question that needs an answer. Kanitkar has even pointed out to the players how fortunate they are to play for a state like TN which provides the best in terms of preparation and support, but until and unless the players realise, it would be hard for the team to deliver to its capabilities. “We couldn’t have asked for a better support staff. They gave the best and want the best out of us, but somehow we didn’t do it this season.

There are a lot of players in the dressing room who have big ambitions, but it didn’t reflect in the field. We even had good preparations ahead of Vijay Hazare in the VA Parthasarathy tournament, but we have to be more collective and responsible as a team,” captain Vijay Shankar said.

venkatakrishna@newindianexpress.com

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