CHENNAI: It has been a mixed bag for teams in Tamil Nadu Premier League (TNPL) so far. Defending champions Chepauk Super Gillies, who lost four matches in a row, are out of the race for a spot in the playoffs.
On the other hand, Siechem Madurai Panthers, who in their previous avatars failed to win a single game in the first two years, have won three of their four matches and are in contention for one.
The player draft was held this year, and most of the teams got a complete makeover. Getting their combination right was a big problem for many teams, but quite a few have found the right one this season.
Madurai coach J Arun Kumar says that sticking to the basics helped them with their turnaround. “First of all, our setup was good. When we picked the boys in the draft, we had clear roles for them. I told them to forget the past, think fresh and be positive. I guess it worked.”
Madurai batsman KB Arun Karthik says that self confidence helped them perform better this time around. “Without it, you cannot do anything. Before the tournament, I had one-on-ones talks with every player. I pointed out their potential and their role. I asked the boys to believe in their abilities.”
Many former cricketers believe that Chepauk Super Gillies erred in not retaining R Sathish and R Sai
Kishore for this season. Plus, they picked Vijay Shankar as their key player, knowing fully well that he will not be available for the initial games due to his India A commitments. This prompted Chepauk skipper M Ashwin to state on Thursday after their loss to Lyca Kovai Kings that their failure was due to the fact that they failed to perform as a unit.
In contrast, Jones Tuti Patriots, who won the inaugural edition have more or less found the right combination, and are still in contention for the playoffs.
“We made it a point to pick players who will be mostly available. We knew about Washington Sundar’s India commitments. We had an alternate plans in mind when we picked him,” explained Tuti coach R Prasanna.
“What also helped us was the fact that we had the right amount of experience and youth. Not all players can adjust to cricket under lights.” Brief scores: Chepauk Super Gillies 167/6 in 20 ovs (S Karthik 43, KH Gopinath 40) lost to Jones Tuti Patriots 169/3 in 17.2 ovs (Kaushik Gandhi 45, Subramanian Anand 48 n.o, R Sathish 30 n.o).