TNPL 2017: Trichy Warriors appoint Jonty Rhodes as their mentor

What’s the story?

After the immense success of the inaugural season of the Tamil Nadu Premier League, the domestic tournament’s second edition commenced on 22 July. Defending champions Albert TUTI Patriots beat the Dindigul Dragons by 7 runs at the opening game at the M.A Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai.

Meanwhile, the Ruby Trichy Warriors have announced former South African cricketer, and one of the greatest fielders of the sport, Jonty Rhodes, as their brand ambassador and mentor. They confirmed the news on their official Facebook page.

Earlier, the Ruby Trichy Warriors had exhibited interest in having Rhodes as their mentor.

"We are looking to have either Hussey or Rhodes as a mentor travelling with the team throughout the tournament. It is in the initial stage but we are definitely looking at roping in one of them. We will be contacting them next week and we hope they are available.” the CEO of the franchise, Shyam Kangayan, had told TOI.

In case you didn’t know...

In the first edition of the tournament, the franchise was called Ruby Kanchi Warriors. But going into the second edition, they have changed their name to Ruby Trichy Warriors. They finished seventh in the table last season and appointed Ajay Kudua as their batting coach a few days ago.

The heart of the matter

The TUTI Patriots beat the Trichy Warriors by 10 wickets at the NPR College Ground in Dindigul. The Warriors won the toss and opted to bat. Bharath Shankar’s 40 and Baba Indrajith’s 30 guided them to a total of 120 in 18.5 overs. In reply, Patriots openers Washington Sundar and Kaushik Gandhi wrapped up the chase in 15.3 overs.

What’s next?

They next play VB Thirvallur Veerans on July 30 at the Indian Cement Company Ground, Tirunelveli. The finals of the tournament will be played on August 20 at the MA Chidambaram Stadium. In the inaugural edition, two semifinals were played, followed by the final. This year, however, two qualifiers and an eliminator will decide the finalists.

Author’s Take

In a team full of youngsters, a figure like Rhodes can bring a lot of experience. Besides, with the stardom the South African enjoys, he can help expand the franchise, as well as the tournament’s fan base in India, which, until now, is famous only in its home state.