Preview: Ranji Trophy final, Tamil Nadu vs Rajasthan

The Ranji Trophy Final pits the remarkable Rajasthan outfit going for back to back wins against a Tamil Nadu line up that is in its 5th attempt at winning the title for the first time since 1988. The line ups are a virtual mirror image of each other and the decisive factor in the final might be the fact that the game is being played on Tamil Nadu’s home patch.

Let’s look at the game in greater detail.Tamil Nadu The nearly men of Indian cricket have everything in their favour in this game, with their team being loaded with players who have represented India and the huge advantage of playing on their home pitch.

In Murali Vijay, Abhinav Mukund, Subramaniam Badrinath and Dinesh Karthik, the class in the teams top 4 is evident and will present a huge challenge for Rajasthan. Mukund has dominated throughout the season with an average of 87.10 and his partner, the classy Murali Vijay, displayed all his pedigree with a century in the semifinal against Mumbai. The struggles of the batting of the national team that has sent team India into transition mode offers both with a real incentive to excel – a performance of note in this game with the spotlight shining bright might be rewarded with an Indian Test cap. Speaking of team India, and one of the country’s unluckiest players in Subramaniam Badrinath, who has been down on his usual gluttonous covet of runs this season. You have a real feeling that this sleeping giant in ‘Badri’ might awaken in the final with a decisive masterclass.

Assisting the regal top 4 are two real junk yard dogs who love it when the heat comes on. They are Ramaswamy Prasanna and Vijaykumar Yo Mahesh, who have contributed crucial efforts in the team’s time of greatest need. The top 6 have a real class and resoluteness about it in any situation.

The bowling side of things has a lovely balance about it, led by the three medium pace swing bowlers in Jagannathan Kaushik, Lakshmipathy Balaji and Vijaykumar Yo Mahesh. The first is Kaushik, a bowler that has a real talent of bowling huge indippers which perfectly compliments the outswing of the latter two.

Expect a huge effort from the man with the best smile in world cricket in Balaji, who must be sick to the back teeth of coming second best in his Tamil Nadu career.

The spin department will be headed by the precociously talented 18 year old Aushik Srinivas, who bowls his left arm spin in a delightfully traditional manner, making you swear you were watching Bishen Bedi with his drift and guile and making you believe that this young spinner will grace the national team. The second spin spot will hopefully go to the attack minded Malolan Rangarajan as part of a 5 man attack.

This will leave the team as follows:

1 Abhinav Mukund, 2 Murali Vijay, 3 S Badrinath, 4 Dinesh Karthik (wk), 5 K Vasudevadas, 6 Ramaswamy Prasanna, 7 Yo Mahesh, 8 Malolan Rangarajan, 9 Lakshmipathy Balaji (capt), 10 Jagannathan Kaushik, 11 Aushik Srinivas

Rajasthan

The rise of the Rajasthan team from Plate status a few years back to the remarkable run and win in the Elite Competition last year has Bollywood written all over it.

Arguably the team’s greatest strength is their captain Hrishikesh Kanitkar, who is a shrewd and very insightful leader. He has a wealth of experience, and is very adept at getting the best out of his men as well as putting the clamps on the opposition. Modest in the extreme but matched by his intelligent cricketing brain.

The team’s three pronged pace attack has been behind their ascent to challenge for the title once more. Only God knows why Pankaj Singh has not received an Indian call up for he has been consistently excellent for a few years now, dominating in this season with 32 wickets at 30.40 on predominantly road pitches. Then there’s Rituraj Singh, who in his 3 matches has sets tongues wagging about his ability to bowl the ball at a decent pace while having the ball on a string with his sincere ability in swing. His record of 22 wickets at an average of 14.31 shows his pedigree.

Completing the bowling three headed dragon is Sumit Mathur, who, when it has been needed, has delivered with match winning spells.

The team is a bit thin on the ground in regards to its spin option with both left-arm spinner Gajendra Singh and leg-spinner Vivek Yadav rarely getting the job done. Choosing the leg spin of Yadav would be an attacking ploy fraught with potential reward, but great risk. So it seems apparent that Singh’s safe left arm spin will be preferred.

Onto the batting side of things, which lacks the apparent might of their opposition, but still is laden with very respectable performers. They have the competition’s leading run scorer in Robin Bist, who has amassed 885 with an average of 88.50 with 4 centuries. At the top of the order Aakash Chopra, the ex-Indian opener is always capable of playing a match defining innings, and duly needs to be respected. His partner in Ashok Menaria, who has made the step seamlessly from Under-19 level to being a respected performer, is also a player capable of playing a real gem.

Run Machine- Robin Bist

The rest of the batting has a real fight about led by the veteran Kanitkar and completed by Puneet Yadav and the feisty keeper/batsman Dishant Yagnik, who gained real respect with a century under real pressure against Hyderabad in the quarterfinal.

As the game is soon to start, the Rajasthan team should be as follows:

1 Aakash Chopra, 2 Vineet Saxena, 3 Hrishikesh Kaniktar (capt), 4 Robin Bist, 5 Rashmi Parida, 6 Puneet Yadav, 7 Dishant Yagnik (wk), 8 Rituraj Singh, 9 Gajendra Singh, 10 Pankaj Singh, 11 Sumit Mathur

My Prediction

This game pits a team that has been buried and risen over and over again in Rajasthan against the perennial challenger in Tamil Nadu.

One with a real belief and a penchant for taking opportunities in the current holder Rajasthan pitted against a Tamil Nadu outfit burdened with a reputation of coming up short.

I just think Tamil Nadu will exorcise their demons from the past and be this year’s champions!