DINDIGUL: In Late January last year during Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, a particular tweet was catching the eye of many a cricket fan. “Meet The Indian Lasith Malinga... #Davidson #DELvTN SyedMushtaqAliTrophy #IPL”, was what former India batsman Aakash Chopra had posted on his feed, with a video of a slingy pacer sending down a yorker that nearly took the legs off of a southpaw. On every occasion the speedster was asked about the acknowledgment he got from the popular cricket pundit, a happy grin was his instant response.
Had it not been for the 15 wickets he’d taken for Tuti Patriots in the 2017 edition of Tamil Nadu Premier League (TNPL), the now 27-year-old wouldn’t have been fast-tracked into Tamil Nadu’s one-day side. He wouldn’t have sent down that leg-skittling yorker during a match against Delhi the next year. He wouldn’t have come very close to making it to the Mumbai Indians side a few months later.
“Everything that has happened to me after TNPL has happened because of TNPL,” remarks Varun Chakaravarthy, perhaps the grandest “rising through the ranks to reach the biggest level” story that this league has scripted since its inception three years ago. A former architect. A nondescript lower-division player in the Tamil Nadu Cricket Association league.
And a man who was handed a cheque worth Rs 8.4 crore last December, one among the only two milliondollar Indian packages in this year’s IPL. He’d already warmed the nets for Chennai Super Kings and Kolkata Knight Riders in 2018. But it was Varun’s economy of 4.7 that his seven variations had earned during Madurai Panthers’ title-winning run in the 2018 TNPL that made Kings XI Punjab burn a crater in their pocket.
Though he got only one outing with the team — cut short by injury, which will also keep him out of this year’s TNPL — a star was born. “Goes without saying that the channel and the slot in which it is aired gets the league a lot of eyeballs. It’s definitely beneficial for players who are yet to show their stuff on the big stage. Although it may be on a smaller scale, but players get to experience the atmosphere of being in a tournament with high stakes,” observes Varun.
“You’re playing under lights. The standard on the field is high. All those things help players prepare for the big stage. It’s not just me, a lot of players have been given a platform by this league, IPL or otherwise.” He isn’t exaggerating. Varun himself, Thangarasu Natarajan, Davidson, and quite a few other players have found a footing in the domestic circuit courtesy this league.
Sharing dressing rooms with experienced players from the state — and at times internationals — is a crucial factor, according to the spinner, which serves them in good stead later on. “You have many seniors around you throughout the tournament; guys who’ve turned out for the state team for a long time. And you’re constantly communicating with them, learning new things.
Those pieces of advice are not just about the game. Sometimes they’re about your psyche; things that help you toughen up mentally for the journey ahead. I had guys like KB Arun Karthick around me, and they gave me many inputs that helped.” The cricket fans in Dindigul would have counted down the days for the start of the fourth edition of TNPL that begins on Friday. Why wouldn’t they? Not everyday would they get to see the beginning of some origin stories they’ll remember for times to come.