Lyca Kovai Kings and Karaikudi Kaalai will clash in the opening match of the 2017 India Cements Ltd Tamil Nadu Premier League (TNPL) at Tirunelveli on July 23 at the India Cements Ground. Both teams will look to get off to a positive start in the TNPL’s second season.
The 2017 edition is all set for a grand start in the districts. It promises to be bigger and better as all the teams know what to expect this time around. Lyca Kovai Kings will look to get the better of Karaikudi Kaalai having lost the only encounter between the two sides last season.
Lyca Kovai Kings had a solid campaign in the first season with a mix of good performances with the bat and ball. They made it to the knockout stages but fell to Chepauk Super Gillies in the semi-finals. The new ball bowling combination of K Vignesh and M Mohammed got them off to strong starts in most of the games. Harish Kumar also chipped in with an all-around effort. A lot will depend on the starts Anirudh Sitaram and Suryaprakash are able to provide the team with. The experience of J Syed Mohammed will be crucial for the fortunes of the Kovai side.
Karaikudi Kaalai just missed qualifying for the knockout stages last year finishing in the fifth spot and losing out to Kovai. The biggest problem for the side last year seemed to lie in their consistency. Sonu Yadav, having picked 11 wickets last year was impressive as his bowling rescued the team on several occasions. Badrinath will hope for his batting to click this time around so that he can anchor the team. The form of experienced campaigners Ganapathi Chandrasekhar, Rajkumar and Anirudha S will be vital to how far the side progresses in the tournament.
Key contest: Skipper S Badrinath will look to lead from the front and how he sees off the new ball will be a keen contest when Kaalai and Kovai Kings lock horns on Sunday.
Head to head: Kaalai 1 Kovai 0 (Karaikudi Kaalai beat Lyca Kovai Kings by 36 runs in 2016)
