Left-arm spinner R. Sai Kishore captained the Tamil Nadu team for the 2023-24 Ranji Trophy season on Monday, along with his deputy Pradosh Ranjan Paul, when the state’s senior selection committee selected its 15-member squad for the premier-class competition. In the country, which begins on January 5.
Incidentally, Sai Kishore has already been tipped as future captain by the previous selection committee, which appointed him captain for the last two matches of last season. However, the 27-year-old only made one start as he missed the final league match due to illness.
Tamil Nadu has not qualified for the Ranji Trophy playoffs since the 2016–17 season and has not won a title since 1987–88.
In a major boost to the pace of the attack, left-arm pacer T. Natarajan returns to the team after three years, having last played in 2020 against Chennai Railways. Incidentally, Natarajan’s last first-class match was his maiden Test match against Australia in Brisbane in 2021. Likewise, all-rounder Mohammed is back after being dropped in the previous season.
Former Madhya Pradesh pacer Kuldeep Sen, who moved to Tamil Nadu earlier this year, is unavailable for the first few matches due to personal reasons.
However, the biggest surprise was the omission of B. Aparajith. Instead, the selectors picked young batsmen B Sachin and R. Vimal Khumar, who have performed well in the I-League and age group tournaments recently.
“We are looking to build a team for the future and have a mix of youth and experience. There are some good players coming through the Under-19 and Under-23 levels as well, and we want to start the transition process slowly,” said UR Radhakrishnan, chairman of the selection committee.
Tamil Nadu Ranji Trophy 2023-24
R. Sai Kishore (C), Pradosh Ranjan Paul (VC), Washington Sundar, Sai Sudarsan, N. Jagadeesan, Baba Indrajith, Vijay Shankar, S. Lokeshwar, S. Ajith Ram, B. Sachin, M. Muhammad, Sandeep Warrier, T Natarajan, Vimal Khumar, Trilok Nag.
Tamil Nadu Ranji Trophy 2023-24 Matches
January 5-8: vs. Gujarat (Valsad)
January 12-15: vs. Tripura (Agartala)
January 19-22: Against Railways (Coimbatore)
January 26-29: vs. Chandigarh (Salem)
February 2-5: vs. Goa (Porvorim)
February 9-12: vs. Karnataka (Chennai, MAC Stadium)
February 16-19: vs Punjab (Coimbatore)