'Namma ooru, Namma gethu' - remember this? Yes, it is back and how. TNPL, Version 2.0, is back to enthrall cricket lovers of Tamil Nadu. Against the expectations of many people, the first edition of TNPL turned out to be the most successful cricket event after IPL. Coimbatore is sending 8 men and a coach to this year’s TNPL. Let's raise a toast to that!
“Behind every fearless player is a fearless coach who refused to let him be anything but the best he could be.” We may not know who wrote or said this, but truth is universal, as they say. Coaches can make or break players. Avinash Khandewal , the assistant coach of Chepauk super Gillies, is from our own Coimbatore. He is also the fielding coach of the Tamil Nadu Ranji team, the only coach from Coimbatore ever to land such a prestigious post. Avinash got this opportunity when he helped the Coimbatore district team reach the final of a State tournament.” Hemang Badani, coach of the Chepauk team in TNPL, saw me there and asked me to join them as assistant coach. My life changed from that moment, and I got a huge opportunity to showcase my talent as coach," he said.
“The moment” of Avinash's life came when he got a call from TNCA secretary Kasi Viswanathan, informing him that he was being appointed as the Tamil Nadu Ranji team fielding coach. "Working with the likes of Dinesh Karthik in the Ranji team was an amazing experience, which I never thought would happen this soon,” Avinash adds with a smile.
Speaking about the talent from Coimbatore, Avinash says, “We have a pool of talent here – be it Radhakrishnan, who is part of the India U-19 team, or N. Jagadeesan, who hit a century in his Ranji debut, and a few others who are part of TNPL. We have 11 players playing first division matches, 3 players in the Ranji squad and 4 in the Ranji One Day team. The future of Coimbatore cricket is very bright.”
And Avinash’s advice to the young aspirants is just this: “Just go out and enjoy the game. Don’t think too much about selection. You will automatically succeed once you start showing excellence.”
Here's more about the brigade from Coimbatore:
S. Radhakrishnan: The 18-year-old all-rounder is part of the India U-19 team, the first cricketer ever from Coimbatore to play for the country. The right handed batsman is associated with Chepauk Super Gillies and he will miss this TNPL season since he is travelling with the India U-19 team and is currently representing the country in England. This stylish batsman was praised by the great Rahul Dravid, when he scored 62 in his debut match against England U-19.
Aushik Srinivas: The left arm spinner, the second youngest player to play for the Ranji team, is a part of Tuti Patriots, last year's TNPL champions. The student of Shree Nehru Vidyalaya school started his training under Gurusamy, the coach of Shree Ramakrishna Cricket Academy. "I owe my success to Guru Sir and my other coaches, who helped me reach this level,” says Aushik, who started playing cricket at the age of 8.
N. Jagadeesan: The highest-run scorer of the first edition of TNPL is a wicket keeper-batsman. He scored 397 runs in the last season. “Since I was the highest run scorer last season, bowlers will definitely target me. I should be always ready with my plan B,” says Jaggi, as he is fondly called by his team mates. “Rubbing shoulders with players like Dinesh Karthik, Ashwin Ravichandran and Murali Vijay is itself a learning experience. It feels awesome to share the dressing room with them.” Trained by Mr. Gurusamy in Coimbatore at the SRCA, he graduated from PSG College of Arts and Science.
J. Kousik plays for Ruby Trichy Warriors. The top order batsman is also a new ball bowler and was trained by Mr. Suresh Kumar at the Jayendra Saraswathi School. “Coming from a family with no cricketing background, it was Suresh Sir who spotted me and brought me to this level. I am grateful to CDCA for giving me the platform and my coach who has been mentoring me through out and I owe all my success to him and CDCA. I should also thank my team Ruby Trichy Warriors and the management who took care of us extremely well in spite of us not having a very good season last year. This year we are working really hard and I am sure we will make an impact in TNPL 2.0,” says Kousik confidently. He was TNCA’s Cricketer of the year in 2016.
Hari Nishanth: The left handed batsman plays for VB Tiruvallur Veerans. This 20-year-old calls himself a batsman who can also bowl. He idolises Yuvaraj Singh and Suresh Raina. "My father was my first coach and after I joined Ramakrishna, Guru Sir started coaching me. I owe my career big time to Guru Sir, Vinodh Sir, Nasser Sir and Avinash Anna. I still go to them whenever I have a problem,” Hari Nishanth says with lot of gratitude.
Gowtham Thamarai Kannan: He is a part of Lyca Kovai Kings. The right hand medium pacer fondly talks about his brother Vijay Kumar, who plays for a club in Coimbatore. “I started playing cricket only to bunk my math classes and it is because of my brother that I started taking the game seriously. It was Mr. Shanmuga Vel and Mr. Stalin, physical directors at Ramakrishna Polytechnic, who spotted my talent and sent me to SRCA. My journey started there under Guru Sir, Vinod Sir and Nasser Sir,” says Gowtham.
M.Shahjahan: Shahjahan is an all-rounder playing for Team Kaaraikudi kaalai. He is a top-order batsman who can hold an innings together. He is a left-arm spinner who can trouble the best of batsmen.
S. Mohan Prasath: He is playing for the Kaaraikudi Kaalai team. Prasath is a left arm spinner who varies his game as per the opposition. He is a lower-order batsman with big-hitting ability.
All appreciation should go to CDCA for nurturing these young players and giving them opportunities to prove their abilities. Hopefully, the young brigade from Coimbatore will make CDCA and all of us very proud this season of TNPL.