Under the floodlights of MA Chidambaram Stadium, B Sachin lived a dream. The batter played a big role in his team Vida Kovai Kings winning the Tamil Nadu Premier League 2026. His century stand with C Andre Siddarth set up his team’s win against Madurai Panthers. He was also named Player of the Tournament for making 428 runs. “At the start of the tournament I wanted to do something special and I am glad that it came true,” said an elated Sachin.
With the pace at which Kovai began the final, they were expected to post over 200. However, they finished with 182/7 on board. “In the middle of 10 overs we were around 105. So, 200 was possible but they bowled well. The wicket was quite sticky. So, 180 was a par score,” he shared.
The 23-year-old had been practicing power hitting for the last six months and that came in handy. “I worked with the bowling machine and did some power hitting works as well. It actually helped me,” he said.
In a tournament that has become memorable for him, Sachin rates his innings early on at NPR College grounds, Dindigul, as his best performance. “I feel the innings where I got 84 runs against Madurai Panthers as my best, though we lost the game. I felt my effort was spot on. For me, that was a good innings as it gave me confidence going forward in the tournament,” he said. In that match too, he had a big partnership with Andre.
The Sea Hawks player also commended M Shahrukh Khan’s captaincy for shuffling his bowlers well. “He has been taking the team forward. He was helping us a lot in terms of how we plan the game and how we need to make those plans work. His inputs helped us a lot. Most of the players chipped in at the right moment to win the title,” he said.
Sachin was also grateful for Thiru Kumaran’s role. “He just gave me one role and that was to bat till 15-16 overs and take the game through. I was doing that. He gave me the freedom, he gave me the plan, and that went well,” said Sachin, who aims to represent the state in all three formats.
He also attributed his team’s bowling as one of the main reasons for the title triumph. “All six bowlers impressed me, especially Deeban Lingesh, Jhathavedh Subramanyan, and M Siddharth. They performed well when required,” he signed off.
