Published: Sep 16, 2016, 04:00 PM (IST)
Edited: Sep 16, 2016, 06:52 PM (IST)
Group league matches of Tamil Nadu Premier League (TNPL) 2016 are over and it is time for play-offs. This is the first semi-final between Dindigul Dragons (DDD) and Albert TUTI Patriots (TUTIP) and will decide the first finalist of this season of the tournament. The match is scheduled to be played at the Indian Cement Company Ground, Tirunelveli. Dindigul Dragons have been one of the most consistent sides of the tournament so far while TUTI Patriots have fought their fight with strong teams to reach the semi-final. This will be a tough fight for the latter as DDD will be the sure favourites. ALSO READ: TNPL 2016: DD ease through to the playoffs, following 7-wicket win over KK
The last time the two teams faced each other, the match had ended in a draw and DDD won it in the super over. The level of competition is evident from the match result. However, DDD was the first team to qualify for the semi-finals. One very prominent pattern is that DDD’s opponents have not let his opponents score big. The team’s bowling is one thing that has been immensely consistent. They will look to maintain their form to ensure they are close to victory.
One of their leading bowlers is T Natarajan. Natarajan was the reason behind DDD’s super over win against TUTIP and the team will depend upon the bowler and his yorkers in this match as well. Natarajan has been exceptional in the death overs, which has been the main reason behind their opponents not being able to score big. He will lead the bowling attack of the team, which has a lot more to it as well.
The spin department of the team is quite strong, which provides them with extra advantage in this competition. The three names MS Sanjay, Murugan Ashwin and Yazh Arun Mozhi will look to bring in the necessary success and do tha damage.
The team finds yet another bowler in Guru Kedarnath who has been efficient so far. M Silambarasan, who made his debut in the tournament with the match against Lyca Kovai Kings, also looked promising which is a great boost for DDD. Sunny Kumar Singh can be used as a part time option as he has been successful in the league.
However, the team will miss their most experienced player, the star of the side, Ravichandran Ashwin. Ashwin, as expected, was one of the most successful names in the squad but will not be around due to national duties. A statement released by a Times of India source said, “Dindigul management thought Ashwin would be available for the match as the national camp was scheduled from September 17. They were awaiting confirmation and clearance from BCCI. However, it didn’t happen.”
DDD’s batting has found a perfect match-winner in N Jagadeesan. The player has been one consistent performer for the side. The other names that have supported the team’s performance with the bat are Subramaniya Siva and Wilkins Victor. Murugan Ashwin is also capable of hitting well coming out in the middle-order. One department that the team needs betterment is their middle-order. The performance has not been at par with the entire line-up and if they can gain the balance throughout, the team will be close to unbeatable.
For TUTIP, the good news is that they are likely to be joined by Dinesh Karthik. Karthik has been consistent in the recent times and was a part of the Duleep Trophy 2016-17 winning India Blue side. The player contributed majorly in the middle-order batting and if he joins, he will surely make his experience count and try to lead the side to a victorious end. The batting has not been as good compared to their bowling and Karthik’s inclusion can be their key to success in the match.
Among the batsmen, Kaushik Gandhi is one person who will have to take on a lot of responsibilities. The player is expected to provide a solid start with a good innings so that they can proceed towards a big total. The other batsmen who have done well and will be depended upon for the team’s good batting are SP Nathan and Anand Subramanium.
Another positive for the team has to be their run just before the semi-final as they won consecutive matches. In bowling lies TUTIP’s main strength. The attack is led by experienced Lakshmipathy Balaji who will look for some early scalps in the all-so-crucial match. Aswin Crist is the other pacer who has done exceptionally well with the ball but has picked up fewer wickets.
However, the spinners have been the most successful with the ball in the league. Ganesh Moorthi, Aushik Srinivas and Washington Sundar are the three names who have been the game-changers for the team and will be expected to carry on with their performances in order to earn the ticket to final for their team.
Squads:
Dindigul Dragons: N Jagadeesan(wk), Ganga Sridhar Raju, Subramania Siva(c), T Natarajan, Sunny Kumar Singh, Ashwin Venkataraman, Wilkins Victor, S Abishiek, Murugan Ashwin, Adithya Arun, S Dinesh, VRS Guru Kedarnath, D Prashanth Prabhu, MS Sanjay, S Shyam Sundar, M Silambarasan, R Vivek, ME Yazh Arun Mozhi, K Mukunth, S Raghunath, Ravichandran Ashwin
TUTI Patriots: Umashankar Sushil (wk), Siddarth Ahuja, Akash Sumra, Subramanian Anand, Aswin Crist, V Athisayaraj Davidson, Aushik Srinivas, Lakshmipathy Balaji (c), M Ganesh Moorthi, Kaushik Gandhi, V Lakshman, Maaruthi Raghav, Abhinav Mukund, SP Nathan, G Nicul Anand, R Sathyanarayan, R Vishaal, Washington Sundar, Dinesh Karthik
