Published: Nov 03, 2011, 10:31 AM (IST)
Edited: May 02, 2014, 12:47 PM (IST)
By Sidhanta Patnaik
The glamour will be missing and most of the matches will be played with the police personnel and ground staff as the only audience but none of the 400 plus cricketers participating in the 67th edition of Ranji Trophy, India’s premier first-class competition will have a reason to complain. Consistent performances in the National Championship could be passport to an IPL contract or a call from the national selectors.
Here is a firsthand look of the Super League teams:
Rajasthan: It was a fairytale performance last season. The formula of youth and experience, which did the job last season, will be seen this season as well. Ashok Menaria and Deepak Chahar will soon find out that the second season of domestic cricket is more demanding than the first one.
Uttar Pradesh: With Suresh Raina, Mohammed Kaif, Praveen Kumar, RP Singh and Piyush Chawla in their line-up, UP journey will depend a lot on the availability to manage the resources in the absence of the India stars, especially in the absence of Raina and Praveen. But UP’s gritty sports hostel culture is such, it will not be surprising to witness new names taking up ownership at various crucial junctures.
Baroda: As a team, Baroda has outgrown from the mould of star dependency. But as senior players, it’s important for Yusuf Pathan and Irfan Pathan make their presence felt for them to reclaim their international career graph. Ambati Rayudu and Bhargav Bhatt, too, will be looking to impress the national selectors.
Mumbai: No more are the domestic giants invincible and they are entering the season with a reputation to resurrect. The absence of Ajit Agarkar indicates that the selectors have a different plan, and for majority of the season they are likely to be without the services of Ajinkya Rahane. This will open the door for a few new names to live their dream. Wasim Jaffer and Rohit Sharma are expected to score runs in bucket and Iqbal Abdullah will be the young name to watch out for.
Bengal: Sourav Ganguly’s inclusion in the squad is a way for him to get back to match practice for the next edition of IPL and that is not a healthy sign for Bengal’s point of view in the championship. Wriddhiman Saha and Manoj Tiwary will form the fulcrum of the side, but the Bengal bowling lacks the depth and variety to scare opponents.
Karnataka: For yet another year they enter the championship looking formidable on paper, but for some reason that has not led to title finishes. A trophy in the cabinet of KSCA office will be the first tangible reward for Team Kumble. The consistent Manish Pandey will once again be looking to leave his mark, while Robin Uthappa has to convert his starts into big scores. No more does Sunil Joshi feature in the scheme of things, but in Abhimanyu Mithun and Sreenath Aravind they possess one of the best new ball pair in the country.
Delhi: A team that is filled with players who have been there and done that will look up to Shikhar Dhawan to set the momentum. If they can have access to the services of Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir, Virat Kohli, Ishant Sharma and Ashish Nehra during important matches then they have high chances of ending up among the top finishers of the season.
Saurashtra: With Ravindra Jadeja’s confidence back , Cheteshwar Pujara likely to return after recovering from injury, Shitansu Kotak’s continued vigil at the crease and Nayan Doshi carrying the genes of his father forward, the perennial underdogs of Indian cricket yet again look set to produce some gritty cricket that should do the job for them on more occasions than not.
Gujarat: Their calculative style of cricket has not paid off due to the lack of impact players in the line up. With Parthiv Patel the lone international cricketer at their disposal, they have a huge mountain to climb in their away matches.
Haryana: Though they were impressive last year yet they remain to be the wildcards of the super league. With national selectors sending a clear message to Amit Mishra to get his footwork sorted out he will have to put up a good show both with the ball and as captain to push for a comeback. As a team they will rely on the batting outfit to gain first innings lead.
Punjab: When was the last time Harbhajan Singh played for Punjab? It makes for a good trivia but on ground there are some serious concerns for the country’s leading spinner to address and the season gives him the chance. Similar will be the case with Yuvraj Singh too if he does not make it to the Test team for Australia tour. Beyond the two of them, the team’s progress to the knockout stage will be dependent on how the youngsters tackle the key moments.
Orissa: They have always lacked the depth and conviction to play a level of cricket beyond retaining their place in the elite group. When Michael Bevan was appointed as their coach things looked to be progressing but not even a full season in charge and he has quit his post citing family reasons. It is a step backwards for the state that was last in cricketing news when SS Das opened the innings for the country.
Railways: Their performance chart over the years has hovered between ordinary and excellence. They are a bunch of individuals who have stuck to each other for years now and are an example of how hard the life of a first class cricketer can be. This season they will be hoping that some of the new recruits lead the new wave as the sun is slowly but surely setting on the foundation laid by Sanjay Bangar and Murali Karthik. The biggest challenge for them this season is to retain their position in the elite group.
Tamil Nadu: Another formidable team in the domestic circuit they will again by vying for a title finish this season. In Dinesh Karthik, Abhinav Mukund, Murali Vijay and Subramaniam Badrinath they possess one of the strongest middle orders of the league and are expected to provide a platform that can be leveraged by Laxmipathy Balaji, Yo Mahesh and Ravichandran Ashwin whenever his services will be available.
(Sidhanta Patnaik is a sport marketing professional, a public speaker and a part time writer)
