Ranji Trophy: Table toppers Tamil Nadu takes on Chandigarh in feisty clash at home

CHENNAI: After a two-month hiatus the prestigious red-ball tournament will commence this Thursday with an intriguing Group D clash as table topper Chandigarh takes on Tamil Nadu in the sixth round at Salem Cricket Foundation Stadium.

Tamil Nadu will be eager to turn the page after a disappointing white-ball season having exited the Vijay Hazare trophy campaign in the pre-quarter final and failing to qualify to knockouts in Syed Mushtaq Ali trophy.

However, Tamil Nadu are in the front with 19 points after the first five games and still have two more left before the knockout phase kicks off in February.

While the team’s skipper Sai Kishore was confirmed to be leading the side, the team would still miss the service of Washington Sundar due to his inclusion in the T20 series against England.

The squad also do not have the names of pacer Gurjapneet Singh, who had a stellar debut and Shahrukh Khan, who scored 86 in the last fixture helping the team by promoting up the order. Those two miss out pertaining to injuries.

This home game will be crucial for Tamil Nadu to reserve a spot in the knockouts as an outright win can solidify their place in the top two which would be enough for them to advance to quarterfinals.

TN squad: R Sai Kishore (captain), N Jagadeesan (vice captain), Vijay Shankar, B Indrajith, S Mohamed Ali, C Andre Siddarth, Pradosh Ranjan Paul, Boopathi Vaishna Kumar, S Ajith Ram, S Lakshay Jain, S Lokeshwar (wk), Sandeep Warrier, M Mohammed, M Siddharth, Trilok Nag