The Tamil Nadu Premier League (TNPL) has enabled cricket reach distant corners of the State, said former India captain K. Srikkanth on Tuesday.
He was speaking in a panel discussion that included former Aussie opener Matthew Hayden and India leg-spinner L. Sivaramakrishnan at an event organised by Star India, the official broadcaster of TNPL.
“It’s a combination of passion, talent and hard work that will take a cricketer forward. What a competition like TNPL does is give him a valuable opportunity,” said Srikkanth.
He was confident that competitions like the TNPL would unearth ‘impact players’ who can change the course of matches. “Look at Washington Sundar and the manner he bowled in his first IPL,” Srikkanth pointed out.
Family affair
Hayden said the biggest take-way for him from the inaugural edition of the TNPL was the participation of families. “When the whole families turn up, that means everybody gets interested in cricket and the tournament.”
Along the way, the Australian has taken a liking for the culture and the people of Chennai and Tamil Nadu. And he loves the veshti that he so often sports at events connected with the tournament. “It’s cool and it is comfortable. It kind of fits in with my personality,” Hayden quipped.
Hayden was also delighted with the return of CSK into the IPL fold after two years and said, “To me, it is the No. 1 franchise in the IPL.”
Adding depth
Sivaramakrishnan said TNPL had added to the depth of the State side. “Last season, Tamil Nadu won the Vijay Hazare and the Deodhar Trophy tournaments. The exposure the players got from the tournament really helped the side.
Before long, Tamil Nadu will be able to field two Ranji sides.”
He was delighted at the success of cricketers such as T. Natarajan, Kaushik Gandhi, N. Jagadeesan and Washington Sundar.
“The second edition of TNPL is very important for all and it will be even better and bigger,” Siva said.