Ranji Trophy: Rain threat looms as Tamil Nadu begins quest for elusive title against host Hyderabad

With dark clouds hovering all over, the threat of rain cannot be ignored as Hyderabad takes on Tamil Nadu in the four-day Ranji Trophy season opener at the Rajiv Gandhi Stadium from Tuesday.

FILE PHOTO: | Photo Credit: THE HINDU

Against the backdrop of internal bickerings in the Hyderabad Cricket Association, for a change, action will be on the field when Hyderabad takes on Tamil Nadu in the four-day Ranji Trophy season opener at the Rajiv Gandhi Stadium here from Tuesday.

With dark clouds hovering all over, the threat of rain cannot be ignored. Tamil Nadu will be high on confidence after making it to the quarterfinal in the recently concluded Vijay Hazare Trophy 50-over tournament. The latest sensation N. Jagadeesan, who scored five centuries in the championship, including a world record individual score of 277, will be the star attraction.

Baba Indrajith will lead Tamil Nadu, which has some exciting talent like his deputy R. Sai Kishore and new faces, which include batter Affan Khader, slow bowler Ajith Ram and pacer Trilok Nag.

No doubt, the big-hitting M. Shahrukh Khan, out of action due to a knee injury, will be missed. But, all-rounder Vijay Shankar, who is back after missing the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy and Vijay Hazare Trophy, will have the experience to bank on.

For the home team, Tilak Varma and left-arm pacer Chama Milind, both down with injuries, will be missed even as the team looks to the in-form Rohith Rayudu, who scored 490 runs in the Vijay Hazare Trophy with two centuries and two fifties.

Captain Tanmay Agarwal is expected to lead from the front a team which has quite a few young faces.

“Well, the absence of big names like (Mohammed) Siraj, Tilak (Varma), who should be fit for the next round, and (Chama) Milind, might also mean the younger players can showcase their talent. We hope to start the season on a positive note and take the entire season match by match,” Tanmay said.

THE SQUADS

Tamil Nadu (first three matches): B. Indrajith (c), R Sai Kishore (vc), B. Aparajith, B Sai Sudharsan, N Jagadeesan (wk), Pradosh Ranjan Paul, N. S. Chaturved, Affan Khader, Vijay Shankar, R. Kavin (wk), Ajith Ram, Sandeep Warrier, Aswin Crist, L. Vignesh, Trilok Nag.

Hyderabad: Abhirath Reddy, Tanmay Agarwal, Anikethreddy, Bhagath Varma, Bhavesh Seth, Ajay Dev Goud, Tholkanti Goud, Mickil Jaiswal, Jaweed Ali, Kartikeya Kak, Tadakamalla Mohith, Prateek Reddy, Pratheek Pawar, B. Punnaiah, Rakshan Readdi, Ravi Teja, Rohit Rayudu, Chandan Sahani, Samhith Reddy, Tanay Thyagarajan.