Rahane embracing X-factor Iyer; TN plot downfall

Mumbai, March 1

Mumbai captain Ajinkya Rahane today backed Shreyas Iyer to put the contractual turmoil behind him and deliver a punchy performance for the team in their Ranji Trophy semifinal against Tamil Nadu beginning here tomorrow.

Shreyas sat out of Mumbai’s quarterfinal against Baroda here while complaining of back pain.

“He’s an experienced player. His contribution has been amazing whenever he turned up for Mumbai. We are thrilled to have him in our team for the semifinal,” Rahane said.

Rahane said Shreyas would not require any extra motivation to do well for Mumbai.

“I don’t think he needs any encouragement or advice. He has always contributed with the bat for Mumbai, and he being around other players in the dressing room will also help the team’s cause,” said Rahane.

Rahane confirmed that opener Prithvi Shaw has recovered from a finger injury which had forced him to bat in the middle-order during the quarterfinal. “His finger was hurt, that’s why he came down the order. We wanted him to go before Musheer (Khan). But obviously, because of the injection’s effect, he had to go after him,” Rahane said.

He said Mumbai will adopt a pressure-free approach in this game.

“We are playing really well. We don’t want to think about the quarterfinal, semifinal or final. It is just another game for us. If we can do that and be in the moment as a team and individuals, it will help us,” Rahane said.

‘Mumbai on fingertips’

Tamil Nadu skipper R Sai Kishore said that they will lean on the experience and nous of coach Sulakshan Kulkarni, who has “Mumbai cricket on his fingertips”, to deliver the knockout punch.

Tamil Nadu’s last Ranji final appearance was in the 2014-15 season when they lost to Karnataka.

“Sulu sir always has his strategies (in place). He is always observant on the ground and that is one of his best qualities. There’s never a session where he wanders off. He has been of great help while captaining,” said Sai Kishore.

Kulkarni also hoped to put into use his vast knowledge of Mumbai cricket in favour of his side.

“I’ve told my team that Mumbai cricket is on my fingertips. I know each and every (player’s) positives and negatives. Yes, we respect our opponents because they have a big legacy. But we’ll have a good game,” Kulkarni said.

Kulkarni, a former Mumbai batter of repute, said it’s time Tamil Nadu translated its talent into trophies more consistently at the domestic level.

“We have (produced) so many Test cricketers, including R Ashwin and Murali Vijay, and so many (other) cricketers. We have played four (Ranji) finals in the last 15-20 years. It is not a bad performance. But a (Ranji) trophy (win) has eluded us,” Kulkarni said.

“This year we are playing quality cricket. The team bonding is great and, hopefully, we will break that jinx this year,” he added.