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New IPL teams add incentive to Syed Mushtaq Ali Twenty20
All IPL teams will be following the domestic T20 tournament closely with a mega auction coming up later this month.
With two new Indian Premier League (IPL) teams looking for new talent for their maiden season next year, the Syed Mushtaq Ali Twenty20 Trophy, beginning Thursday, will make for the ideal platform for players to showcase their abilities. An added incentive: the Indian team, staring at an early exit at the T20 World Cup will also face an overhaul.
Maharashtra’s Ruturaj Gaikwad, IPL’s top-scorer with champions Chennai Super Kings, and Tamil Nadu pacer T Nataraj, on a comeback from injury, will be under close watch as Maharashtra and defending champions Tamil Nadu square off in the opening league match of the Elite Group A, at the Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Stadium here at 8.30 am on Thursday. Punjab take on Pondicherry in the second match of the day at the same venue at 1 pm. In another morning match, Odisha will lock horns with Goa on the B ground.
Opening batter Gaikwad, who hails from Pune, has been a consistent performer for his state team Maharashtra. He was the highest run-getter for Maharashtra in the league stage of the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2018-19. At the IPL 2019 player auction, Chennai Super Kings took him on the rolls and the batter showed his might in style, hitting 204 runs, including three half- centuries with 72 being his highest in just six matches.
But he was merely getting started. Gaikwad went on to score 635 runs at an average of 45.35, including an unbeaten century and seven half- centuries, in 16 matches in the UAE leg of the IPL to win the Orange Cap. His batting helped CSK not only to maintain their consistency after a horrendous season last year, but also win their fourth IPL title.
Gaikwad, a hard-hitting batter, would love to make full use of a good batting strip here, which has bounce as well as pace.
As far as TN left-arm pacer T Natarajan is concerned, he always did well for India. His 2/70 in his debut ODI game against Australia helped India win the match by 11 runs in December last. He took 3/30 against the same side in his debut T20I game a couple of days later. His success continued even then when he got 3/78 against Australia in his debut Test at The Gabba in January.
Captain Virat Kohli was quick to praise Natarajan following the third and final T20I against Australia in Sydney. Natarajan, selected in the national side for the first time, had picked up six wickets in three T20Is at an economy rate of just under seven and was instrumental in India clinching the series 2-1.
“Special mention for Natarajan, in the absence of Shami and Bumrah, he stood out and really delivered under pressure,” Kohli had said for Natarajan.
“It is outstanding because he is playing his first few games at the international level. He looks very composed, he is a humble and hard working guy, he is sure of what he is doing. I hope he continues to keep working hard on his game and gets better. This is because a left- arm bowler is an asset for any team,” Kohli added.
Sunrisers Hyderabad’s Natarajan was ruled out of the UAE leg of the IPL 2021 after being tested positive for Covid-19 ahead of SRH’s first game against Delhi Capitals. This was the fourth time that he was ruled out due to injury or Covid-19 ahead of a key series.
Vijay Shankar, who could score just 101 runs in nine T20 matches for India so far, will lead Tamil Nadu in the tournament in the absence of Dinesh Karthik, who is now recovering from a knee issue and has been advised six weeks’ rest. Veteran all-rounder Kedar Jadhav would be the other key player for Maharashtra in action here.
Besides six teams in the Elite Group A, 24 more teams in four other Elite Groups and eight teams in the Plate Group too would also begin their campaign from Thursday at different locations like Guwahati, Baroda, Delhi, Haryana and Vijayawada. The knockouts are set to begin on November 17 at Delhi with the final slated on November 22 in the city.
