CHENNAI: Way behind in the race for knockout berths, Tamil Nadu would look to revive their Ranji Trophy campaign when they lock horns with Railways in a sixth-round match at Chepauk from Sunday. With just five points from five matches, the hosts are 17th among the 18 teams on the combined table of Groups A and B.
Railways are ninth with 13 points. After the last match against Mumbai, coaches of both teams were vocal against the placid nature of the pitch. But with this game to be played on a new surface that looks hard, dry and promises good bounce, Tamil Nadu are confident of a turnaround.
“It is red soil and I feel there will be assistance for the spinners as it will have some bounce and pace. It will be a challenging surface with some life in it,” felt Tamil Nadu skipper B Aparajith. Despite having the likes of Abhinav Mukund, R Ashwin and Dinesh Karthik in their ranks, Tamil Nadu did poorly against a young Mumbai side in the last game.
“Had we won the toss, things could have been different. Having said that, I am sure the boys have learnt from their mistakes and will perform to potential,’’ said M Senthilnathan, chairman of the state selection committee.
Tamil Nadu have been inconsistent this season. From a position of strength, they have often slid into a mess, losing wickets in quick succession.
“Yes it has happened. I have pointed out the mistakes and told the boys the process to correct them. The problem lies in execution. Some of the boys have not been able to execute the plans. They need to work harder and I am hopeful they will do better,” said D Vasu, Tamil Nadu coach. The hosts missed a fifth bowler in the previous game.
Aparajith tried to fit into that role but was not effective. M Siddharth could be a handy option as third spinner lending support to Ashwin and R Sai Kishore.
“We did miss a fifth bowler in the last game. I believe in being positive and going for a win. Keeping that in mind, we will pick the team,’’ explained Vasu.
On the other hand, Railways will miss captain and leg-spinner Karn Sharma due to injury. Stand-in captain Arindam Ghosh believes his team is still strong without the star spinner.
“We carry that confidence into this game. We are aware that Tamil Nadu are a tough proposition at home. But we too have quality players to do the job. We have a couple of all-rounders who will come in handy on this surface,’’ said Ghosh.