CHENNAI: MS Dhoni, arguably one of India’s best captains, often said that he would like to carry the Chepauk pitch with him. It generally has something for batsmen and assists spinners later on. It’s expected to be no different when Group C matches of the Vijay Hazare Trophy get underway on Wednesday.
All five venues — IIT-Chemplast, SRMC, TI Cycles, SSN College being the others — are known to assist spin. So spinners will play an important role in the fortunes of the 10 teams in fray. “Spinners will be the key for all the teams and for our team’s success in particular. In the absence of R Ashwin and Washington Sundar, it’s time someone steps in and grabs the opportunity. The middle overs are very important and we have some quality spinners who can do the job,’’ said Vijay Shankar, captain of Tamil Nadu.
Piyush Chawla, who has a lot of experience of playing in the Chennai league, is the lead spinner for Gujarat.He, too, believes the likes of him will play a big part, adding that one has to be accurate. “At this time of the year, wickets tend to be slow and naturally spinners come in handy. Having played the TNCA league for a long time, I’m familiar with conditions. To get purchase, a spinner needs to be on his toes, keep shuffling his stock deliveries depending on who he bowling to, with an eye on the wicket and conditions. You have to try and innovate, as all batsmen at this level are good players of spin,’’ observed the leg-spinner.Assam’s Rahul Singh and Gokul Sharma too are out to make an impression.
“I have heard about conditions and wickets here. As a left-arm spinner, I will use my imagination and try my best to get as much purchase as possible,’’ said Rahul. “I have played here before. Plus, I have spoken to KB Arun Karthik (former Assam pro),” added Sharma, who bowls off-spin.
With spinners set to play a big role, many eyes will be on the Tamil Nadu duo of Rahil Shah and Varun Chakaravarthy. While the former is a tested left-armer who did well in the recent VAP Memorial Trophy, the latter is a mystery spinner.
“I will definitely carry the confidence into this tournament,” said Shah.
“I will try to keep it simple. The wickets will be spinner friendly and although we had good practice at the VAP Trophy, we have to adapt to the Kookaburra ball for this tournament.”
After a good outing in the TNPL, Varun will be a man to watch. “He has the craft and skill. He is hard working and wants to raise the bar all the time. What he needs to do is to improve mental toughness to succeed at this level,’’ opined former Tamil Nadu captain and fielding coach R Prasanna.
Chawla, who has seen Varun, has a word of caution for the youngster. “From what I have seen he (Varun) is good, but pressure at this level (first class/list A) is different from what he has experienced so far. So let’s wait and see,” observed the international.
ashok.v@newindianexpress.com