A 19-member Tamil Nadu team will be travelling to the U.K. from May 2 to 28 to play a series of matches across formats as part of the TNCA’s efforts to give exposure to the State players.
The players have been selected across age categories, including under-19, under-23 and Ranji Trophy. Pradosh Ranjan Paul or N. Jagadeesan are likely to lead the side in turns. The team will play four two-day games, five one-day games, and a T20 against the U.K.-based teams, including the second XIs of counties like Notts, Northamptonshire, Hampshire, Essex and Warwickshire.
The players will be accompanied by six support staff members, including Robin Singh, L. Balaji, Tanveer Jabbar, and K. Vasudevadas, as well as a physio and video analyst.
Despite reaching the semifinals of the Ranji Trophy this year, TN has often struggled in seamer-friendly conditions over the last few years, and the tour has been arranged to expose players to different conditions.
“We are not worried about the results. We just want our players to experience new conditions and learn. Apart from match days, we will also have nets sessions We plan to hire a batting consultant, like a former Test player, and a trainer for the duration of the tour,” said TNCA secretary R.I. Palani.
Coaches training
Meanwhile, former India fielding coach R. Sridhar, alongside G. Jayakumar and Dr. Kinjal Suratwala who are all part of Coaching Beyond, has been conducting workshops for TNCA coaches and those of the 37 district teams. A total of 148 coaches will attend these across four batches.
The TNCA will also have four satellite centres ready this year. The centres in Trichy, Tiruppur, and Theni are already up and running, while the one in Madurai is under construction.
T20 tournament
The Association will also conduct a 16-team T20 tournament next month featuring winners and runners of the second and third divisions and the winners of all zones in the fourth, fifth and sixth divisions. The final will be played under lights at MAC Stadium on May 28.
The TN squad: Pradosh Ranjan Paul, N. Jagadeesan, S. Lokeshwar, B. Sachin, R. Vimal Khumar, A. Badrinath, Boopathi Vaishna Kumar, Mokit Hariharan, S. Mohamed Ali, K.T.A. Madhava Prasad, P. Vidyuth, Lakshya Jain, V.S. Karthik Manikandan, R. Sonu Yadav, H. Trilok Nag, C.V. Achyuth, T.D. Lokesh Raj and V.P. Dhiran.
