Venkataramana hopes to lift TN to another new high

An eight-match winning streak – during which the state side steamrolled its opponents – culminated in tournament victory for Tamil Nadu, under the ‘ring of fire’ at the Motera Stadium in Ahmedabad. While winning a title – irrespective of the level – is one thing, retaining it is completely another, something which everyone in the sports industry would agree.

And, the newly-recruited head coach M Venkataramana, who is raring to lift the Tamil Nadu senior men’s team to another new high, is no different. He is fully focussed on the task at hand as the Vijay Shankar-led side will begin its SMAT title defence on Thursday.

“The aim is to hold on to the trophy; we don’t want to lose it. The boys are looking forward to perform well. They have been working hard. In our squad, we have guys who play in the Indian Premier League. So, we are pretty confident of retaining the trophy,” Venkataramana told DT Next from Lucknow, the host city for fixtures in Elite Group A, in which Tamil Nadu is placed.

“We had a 10-day preparatory camp in Chennai last month. After the mandatory quarantine here (referring to Lucknow), we trained for the first time on Tuesday. We will practise on Wednesday as well,” said former India spinner Venkataramana.

In the run-up to the T20 competition, Tamil Nadu was forced into making a captaincy change since regular skipper Dinesh Karthik – a lynchpin of the team over the years – pulled out owing to knee issues. Due to Karthik’s unavailability, all-rounder Vijay Shankar has been handed the leadership role.

“Vijay Shankar has led the side in the past and captaincy is nothing new to him. He has played alongside most of the guys in the team. He is confident and has been doing a good job (since his appointment),” lauded Venkataramana.

Tamil Nadu has been pitted alongside Maharashtra, Odisha, Puducherry, Punjab and Goa in Elite Group A. Clearing the first hurdle shouldn’t be a big ask for a well-drilled side such as Tamil Nadu, but Venkataramana warned his boys that a drop-off in quality could spell danger.

“We cannot take any team lightly. T20 is a format where you cannot take anyone lightly. A matter of two good overs could change the whole scenario of a match,” said Venkataramana, adding that Tamil Nadu must have a ‘Plan B’ in place if ‘Plan A’ fails to work.

“You will get to see our style of play in the matches. We cannot go with a fixed plan. We have been educating the boys on how to get accustomed to different situations and conditions. We have some plans; we will implement them as the tournament progresses,” explained Venkataramana.