Tamil Nadu begin Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy campaign with Karnataka clash

CHENNAI: After missing out on a hat trick of titles last season, the three-time champions Tamil Nadu will be keen on establishing their dominance in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. In their opening match, they will take on arch-rivals Karnataka in Dehradun on Monday. Tamil Nadu and Karnataka are placed in Group E along with Delhi, Madhya Pradesh, Nagaland, Tripura and Uttar Pradesh.
Under newly-appointed coach Sulakshan Kulkarni, the Tamil Nadu team has warmed up well for the T20 tournament, with a four-team (Andhra Pradesh, Hyderabad and Railways being the other teams)) event in Andhra recently.
All-rounder Washington Sundar has taken over the reins from Baba Aparajith, and opening batter B Sai Sudharsan has been named vice-captain.
Wicketkeeper-batter N Jagadeesan, C Hari Nishaanth and young guns Sudharsan and G Ajitesh could play key roles in the batting unit, while the experience of Vijay Shankar and Aparajith could come in handy. All-rounders Washington, R Sanjay Yadav, and M Shahrukh Khan lend balance to the side.
Washington and R Sai Kishore, who were a part of the Indian team which clinched gold medal at the Hangzhou Asian Games, will be on a high.
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Tamil Nadu have recruited ‘guest player’ Kuldeep Sen, a Madhya Pradesh pacer, to bolster their bowling department that already includes the likes of T Natarajan, Sandeep Warrier and spinners Sai Kishore and Varun Chakravarthy.
Tamil Nadu fixtures: Vs Karnataka on October 16; vs Uttar Pradesh on October 17; vs Tripura on October 19; vs Delhi on October 23; vs Madhya Pradesh on October 25; vs Nagaland on October 27.