Kerala hasn’t qualified for the knockout stage of the Ranji Trophy after playing the semifinals, for the first time ever, in 2018-19. One of the main aims of M. Venkataramana, who was appointed on Tuesday as Kerala’s head coach, is to realise the team’s full potential in red-ball cricket.
“I believe there is plenty of talent in Kerala cricket,” Venkataramana, former India and Tamil Nadu off-spinner told The Hindu over phone. “Kerala has qualified for the knockout stage of the Ranji Trophy in the recent past, and I think the team could do it yet again.”
He takes over from former India pacer Tinu Yohannan under whom Kerala did fairly well in white-ball tournaments. “Yes, Kerala’s performance has been good in limited-over cricket and I am sure it could be replicated in the Ranji Trophy as well,” said Venkataramana whose coaching assignments in the past include Tamil Nadu and South Zone (Duleep Trophy).
