Ranji Trophy: New-look TN under Sai Kishore to face Assam

CHENNAI:  With Tamil Nadu's chances of making it to the knock-out phase having evaporated when they conceded the lead to Maharashtra in their previous game, the Sai Kishore-led side will look to try out youngsters in their Elite Group B Ranji Trophy match against Assam to be played here at Chepauk from Tuesday.

On the other hand, Assam which lost to Mumbai by an innings and 128 runs in their previous encounter, will be looking to salvage some pride. Their bowlers in particular will look to recover from the shock of conceding a triple century (379) to Mumbai opener Prithvi Shaw.

However, Assam can look for solace from the fact that they have won one game in the season so far to Tamil Nadu's none. ''Really disappointed with the way we have fared in the season so far. We missed out on a few opportunities to win games and also bag the lead in a few. We (support staff) can only prepare the players keeping in mind the opposition. They have the ability and when they do not perform to their potential it hurts,'' said M Venkataramana, visibly hurt over the hosts' failure to make it to the knock-outs.

Tamil Nadu's failure to beat some of the weaker sides in the league phase has hurt the team badly. They lost a game to Andhra that they should have won. Against Hyderabad, they drew their game. It would be interesting to note that Hyderabad had lost all four other games.

The main problem was that Tamil Nadu bowlers failed to get breakthroughs when it matter most. In most of the games, they let their opponents' tail wag often. ''This (allowing the No 6 or No 7 to score) has been the main problem for us. Our bowlers have not been able to get vital breakthroughs at crucial junctures. We tried to address that problem, but it persisted. Hope in the remaining two games the team plays to potential,'' opined Venkataramana.

For the remaining two games, Sai Kishore will lead the team and Pradosh Ranjan Paul will be his deputy. ''There will be slight changes in the team. We will like to try out youngsters. Boys who have not played so far may get an opportunity in the remaining games. Sai has the talent and can do a good job (captaincy),'' said the former India off-spinner.

Pradosh Ranjan Paul got an opportunity in place of an injured Shahrukh Khan and made the most of it even cracking a couple of crucial hundreds. ''Pradosh was brilliant. He made the most of the opportunities he got. He has the potential to bat well lower down the order and score runs like how S Sharath and R Prasanna did in the past. He has the ability to play with the tail and score runs without being under pressure,'' opined Venkataramana.

Select matches
Group A: At Meerut: Uttar Pradesh vs Odisha
Group B: At Rajkot: Saurashtra vs Andhra; At Chennai: Tamil vs Assam; At Delhi: Delhi vs Mumbai; At Pune: Maharashtra vs Hyderabad
Group C: At Pondicherry: Pondicherry vs Jharkhand; At Thumba: Kerala vs Karnakata
Group D: At Mohali: Punjab vs Madhya Pradesh