Mumbai entered their 48th Ranji Trophy final after beating Tamil Nadu in the 2nd semifinal by an innings and 70 runs in BKC, Mumbai on Monday. Tamil Nadu’s coach Sulakshan Kulkarni believes that they lost the semifinal at the toss itself on Day 1.
Skipper Sai Kishore won the toss and chose to bat first, a decision which shocked many. Kishore defended his decision at the end of Day 1 saying that he followed his instincts as a leader and that is the reason he chose to bat first on a green pitch.
Sulakshan stated that Tamil Nadu should have bowled first after winning the toss.
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“I always speak very straight forward, we lost the match at 9’o clock on Day 1,” Sulakshan told the media after the day’s play.
“That is my blunt straight forward answer. Because I thought everything was set. We won the toss and as a coach and a Mumbaikar myself I knew the conditions,” he said after TN’s loss.
“So yes, we should have bowled first. But then again, the captain has his own instinct and ultimately he is the boss. I can only give my inputs about the wicket and Mumbai’s mindset,” the coach added.
The Tamil Nadu coach admitted that choosing to bowl at the last moment also played in the batter’s mind.
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“We were mentally prepared that whoever wins the toss would bowl first. We knew that we would bowl first. The moment they said we would bat first, whatever you say, it goes in the batter’s minds. That first half an hour (before play) got in the batsmen’s minds,” the coach admitted.
“When you get into the first over, third ball, your international player gets out and you see the situation… in the first hour we lost the game and the plot. It was very difficult to come back,” he added.
‘Kishore’s Inner Voice’
Sulakshan also talked about captain Kishore’s ‘inner voice’ that told him to bat first in the semifinal. He said that he sees that voice in a positive way and he won’t blame the captain for that.
“Again, the instinctive decision, that inner voice, has played a big role. If you can say (it in) the positive way, the inner voice has helped the team in reaching the semifinal,” he said.
“In the previous match against Saurashtra, he went at No 3 and scored 65. That was again the inner voice, which has played (out) the positive way. Every captain has a different mindset, then I would say ‘why not, I won’t blame the captain’,” he continued.
‘Big Rahane Fan’
The Tamil Nadu coach, who is a Mumbaikar himself, shared his admiration for the Mumbai captain.
“I am a big fan of Ajinkya Rahane,” Sulakshan said.
“He has made a big difference to this team though he has not performed as a batter. But as leader he gelled with the team. He is like my student from the U-15 days, he was a successful captain of India,” continued.
“He captained the team when things were not going in favour of the team. He has handled the team in a way that they will now win the trophy under Ajinkya Rahane,” the coach added.
Sulakshan also praised Mumbai’s lower order batters.
“Overall in the game, they are the best (Nos) 9, 10 (and) jack in India. I told this in the dressing room that their batting starts after six,” he said.
The final will be played at the Wankhede Stadium. The decision has been taken taking in consideration the legacy of the tournament.
“The Wankhede Stadium has been the home of Mumbai cricket for almost half a century. So considering the legacy of the tournament and the importance of such a big game for the whole Mumbai cricket community, it is fitting that the final is played at the Wankhede,” Ajinkya Naik, MCA secretary said in a statement.
All eyes are now set on the final of the Ranji Trophy. Mumbai will have to wait to know who will be their opposition in the final as the other semifinal between Madhya Pradesh and Vidarbha is still going on.
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