TNPL 2016: Giants aim to break losing streak against Kings

It will be interesting to see as to what pans out when Madurai Super Giants face Lyca Kovai Kings in their India Cements TN Premier League game at the India Cements Limited ground at Sankarnagar on Friday.

While Kings are sky-high on confidence after a comprehensive win over Albert Tuti Patriots in their last game, Giants, on the other hand, are still winless. Kings, who have won one and lost one game, have had a mixed outing so far in the tournament.

If the first match against Ruby Kanchi Warriors, they lost in the super-over and then they bounced back and won the second against Patriots. MK Sivakumar was the hero against Patriots thanks to his superb hat-trick. Kings’ bowling was well complimented by their batting as is evident by an opening partnership of 94.

That nine-wicket win will instill self-assurance and also help the team regroup. Also, Murali Vijay’s experience and inputs will help the team go a long way. Kings will also aim to win games outside Chennai and keep the momentum going. Giants, on the other hand, lost two close games - one by 12 runs and the other by six runs.

They have the maximum number of district players but lacked that killer instinct in those two games. Muruganantham has been impressive in the bowling department and so was M Raja. Their batting has revolved around the top-order with a few players chipping in the middle-order as well.

Also, they lost the plot in the later stages against VB Thiruvallur Veerans despite a solid start. Shijit Chandran was the sole positive in those two games and the return of Arun Karthik is also good news. Giants will hope to click as a team and get that vital win which will do wonders to their confidence.

Key battle: The tussle between Muruganantham and Murali Vijay is one to watch out for. Vijay, who is a good player of spin, dominates the bowlers. Muruganantham, on the other hand, has been a huge positive for Giants and his leg-breaks have been tough to play even on batting tracks.