TNPL 2016: Big names could miss out on tournament - reports
With a couple of weeks left for the start of the inaugural Tamil Nadu Premier League, six big names will not be a part of the tournament as they have been picked up to represent South Zone in the forthcoming Duleep Trophy which will take place simultaneously. The Duleep Trophy will start from 23 August and end on 14 September, while the TNPL will be played between the 24 August and 18 September. This year’s Duleep Trophy would be played under lights as an experiment to host Day/Night Tests in India in future days.
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The 6 players who were signed by the franchises to play the Tamil Nadu Premier League but was called up for the South Zone matches are: Abhinav Mukund, Dinesh Karthik (both Thoothukudi), M Vijay (Coimbatore), KB Arun Karthick (Madurai), M Ashwin (Dindigul), and B Aparajith (Thiruvallur). All of them are top picks of their respective franchises and will only be available from the Semifinals (Sept 16 & 17) stage.
India’s big names like Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma and Shikhar Dhawan won’t be a part of the Duleep Trophy as they will be rested after their tour of the West indies. It is mostly the players who would not be touring Australia as a part of the India ‘A’ squad are part of the domestic tournament.
With the introduction of the Day/Night Tests in Australia last year to revive the lost glory of the longer format of the game, the BCCI has taken initiatives to organise floodlit domestic and International matches. The first ever pink-ball first class match was held at the famous Eden Gardens in Kolkata, where the final match of the CAB league between Mohun Bagan AC and Bhawanipore was played under lights. The first International Test match was played between Australia and New Zealand at the Adelaide Oval last year.
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It is quite obvious to assume that off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin won’t be a part of the TNPL after a tiresome Test series in the Caribbean but it is learned as per reports of Cricbuzz, Ashwin will be available for the competition and would represent the Dindigul franchise after he returns from the United States of America.
The first match of the Tamil Nadu Premier League will be played between Chepauk and Thootukudi on 24 August in Chennai while Tiruvallur will face off against Karaikudi the following day. TNPL officials had earlier roped in former Australian opener Mathew Hayden as its brand ambassador.