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Follow UsThe eighth edition of Tamil Nadu Premier League (TNPL) is all set to begin on July 5th with eight teams fighting for the title. 32 matches will be played across five venues. While Salem, Coimbatore, Tirunelveli and Dindigul will be hosting 30 games, the iconic MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai will be hosting the 2nd qualifier and Final of the tournament on 4th August.
The TNPL auction happened in the month of February with big names R Sai Kishore, Sanjay Yadav and others all going for big bucks. Here is the list of top signings from the auction.
TOP AUCTION SIGNINGS
R Sai Kishore – IDREAM TIRUPPUR TAMIZHANS – 22 LAKH
Sanjay Yadav – TRICHY ROYAL CHOLAS – 22 LAKH
Harish Kumar – SALEM SPARTANS – 15.4 LAKH
Abhishek Tanwar – CHEPAUK SUPER GILLIES – 12.2 LAKH
T Natarajan – IDREAM TIRUPPUR TAMIZHANS – 11.25 LAKH
R Vivek – SALEM SPARTAN – 11 LAKH
Sandeep Warrier – DINDIGUL DRAGONS – 10.5 LAKH
All the eight teams have their own set of big match players who will be have high expectations to step up and perform for their respective franchises. Here are the teams and their overview for the forthcoming edition of the competition.
TEAMS
LYCA KOVAI KINGS – CHAMPIONS 2022 & 2023
The Kings from Coimbatore have been the best team in the tournament in the last two editions. They were joint winners with Chepauk Super Gillies in the 2022 season and were champions in the 2023 season.
Coming into the 2024 season, they have retained the majority of their squad and have gone on to sign just three players in the auction. They have a good collection of experience, youth and current gen stars of Tamil Nadu with the likes of captain Shahrukh Khan, Sai Sudarshan and M Siddharth, who all have domestic and IPL experience
Players to watch out:
SHAHRUKH KHAN - RIGHT HAND BATTER/ RIGHT ARM OFFSPIN
- 190 strike rate in TNPL 2023
- Decent IPL 2024 for Gujarat Titans – 7 inns, 127 runs, 169 SR, 1 fifty
- Highest wicket taker in TNPL 2023 – 17 wickets
SAI SUDARSHAN - LEFT HAND BATTER
- Second highest run scorer in TNPL 2023 – 6 inns, 371 runs, 74.2 avg, 173 SR, 4 fifties
- Best average in TNPL history (500+ runs) – 62.65
- Excellent IPL 2024 – 12 inns, 527 runs, 47.9 avg, 141 SR, 2 fifties, 1 century
M SIDDHARTH - LEFT ARM SPINNER
- Best economy in TNPL 2023 (20+ overs) – 5.6
- Excellent with the new ball – 20 of 38 wickets in TNPL are in powerplay (1-6)
SQUAD
Retained Players: Atheeq Ur Rahman MA, Divakar R, Gowtham Thamarai Kannan K, Hemcharan P, Jhathavedh Subramanyan, M Mohammed, Mukilesh U, Om Prakash KM, Ram Arvindh R, Sachin B, Sai Sudarshan, Shahrukh Khan, M Siddharth, Sujay S, J Suresh Kumar, Vidyuth P, Yudheeswaran V
Players signed in the auction: Meeran Rahil Rehman, Manish GR and Vignesh GV
TNPL’s most successful franchise had a below par 2023 edition as they finished fifth on the points table, failing to qualify to the playoffs. They have redesigned their squad for the upcoming season and have signed established TNPL players in Abhishek Tanwar, Aswin Crist, Periyasamy G and Darly Ferrario.
They have still retained the core in Baba Aparajith, Narayan Jagadeesan, M Silambarasan and Pradosh Ranjan Paul. A mixture of core players and new signees will definelty make the four-time champions favourites heading into the eighth edition.
Players to watch out:
NARAYAN JAGADEESAN - RIGHT HAND OPENER
- Highest run scorer in TNPL history – 2015 runs
- Most 50+ scores in TNPL – 19
- Lack of runs in last two seasons – one 50+ score in 15 inns
BABA APARAJITH - RIGHT HAND BATTER
- Third most runs in TNPL history – 1801 runs
- Most sixes in TNPL (all time) – 89 sixes
ABHISHEK TANWAR - RIGHT ARM PACER
- Third most expensive player in TNPL 2024 Auction – 12.2 Lakhs
- Most successful pacer in TNPL – 64 wickets
- Economical with the new ball (6.2 econ in powerplay), striking bowler in slog overs (39 wickets)
SQUAD
Retained Players: Baba Aparajith, Arunachalam V, Iyappan B, Naryan Jagadeesan, Jitendra Kumar CH, Lokesh Raj TD, Mathan Kumar S, Pradosh Ranjan Paul, Rahil Shah, Sibi R, Silambarasan M
Players signed in the auction: Periyasamy G, Abhishek Tanwar, Darly Ferrario, Aswin Crist, Rajgopal Sathish, Shajahan M, Surya B, Santhosh Kumar D, Andre Siddarth C
Heading into the eighth season, the Dindigul Dragons have retained the core of their previous season with like of Indian veteran spinner R Ashwin, IPL’s mystery man Varun Chakravarthy, Baba Indrajith and Sarath Kumar C still in the side. They have strengthened their bowling line up with the addition of Sandeep Warrier. With a good balance of experience and youth, the Dragons will hope to clinch their first title in season eight of TNPL.
Players to watch out:
VARUN CHAKRAVARTHY - RIGHT ARM OFF BREAK
- Best economy in TNPL (20+ overs) – 6.0
- Third highest wicket taker in TNPL 2023 – 13 wickets
SUBODH KUMAR BHATI - RIGHT ARM PACE
- Joint second highest wicket taker in TNPL 2023 – 15 wickets
- Majority wickets in slog overs (16-20) – 13 wickets
- One of the best yorker bowlers in TNPL – 5 wickets through yorkers in TNPL 2023
SHIVAM SINGH - RIGHT HAND BAT
- Third highest run scorer in TNPL 2023 – 9 inns, 356 runs, 44.5 avg, 139 SR, 4 fifties
- Good player of paddle scoop, sweep and reverse sweep shots
SQUAD
Retained Players: Adithya G, Affan Khader M, R Ashwin, Boopathi Vaishna Kumar, Diran VP, Kishoor G, Varun Chakravarthy, Baba Indrajith, Sarath Kumar C, Shivam Singh, Subodh Kumar Bhati, Vimal Khumar R, Vignesh P
Players signed in the auction: Sandeep Warrier, Rohan Raju, Rocky B, Aashiq K, Om Nithin K, Elaya Raja P
The Trichy franchise have been the least successful franchise in TNPL so far, making it to the playoffs only once in seven seasons. They finished at the bottom of the table in the last edition, looking clueless, as they failed to win a single game.
With a change in the team name for the fourth time, they will be hoping to see a fortune change as they've put up a decent squad, signing Sanjay Yadav for a whopping 22 lakhs. They also have other quality players in Sarvana Kumar, Vignesh K and Arjun Murthy. They managed to retain experienced heads like Anthony Dhas, Athisayaraj Davidson and Ganga Srinivas Raju.
With a healthy composition of retained and new players, the Trichy Grand Cholas will be hoping to at least make it to the playoffs this time.
Players to watch out:
SANJAY YADAV - LEFT HAND BATTER/ LEFT ARM SPINNER
- Joint most expensive player in TNPL 2024 Auction – 22 Lakhs
- Underwhelming TNPL 2023 with both bat & ball – 7 inns, 102 runs, 17.0 avg, 116 SR, 2 wickets
SARAVANA KUMAR - RIGHT ARM PACER
- Good 2023 TNPL season – 9 inns, 10 wickets, 8.9 econ, 17.1 SR
- Impactful with the new ball – 20 wickets in powerplay (1-6)
SQUAD
Retained Players: W Anthony Dhas, Athisayaraj Davidson, Easwaran K, Francis Rokins, Ganga Sridhar Raju, Godson G, Jafar Jamal, Mani Barathy K, Rajkumar K, Rajkumar R, Vinod SP
Players signed in the auction: Sanjay Yadav, Saravana Kumar, Vignesh K, Nirmal Kumar P, Shyam Sundar S, Mohammed Ashik, Arjun P Murthy, Arun Yohan Mohan, Rejin J
The Salem franchise have had an underwhelming run in TNPL for the last 4-5 editions as they have finished bottom thrice. They have made a truck load of changes heading into 2024 season as they have signed a total of 10 players in the auction, which was the most for any side.
Their retained players lack experience as Sunny Sandhu, Ganesh Moorthi and Jaganath Srinivas have only a few seasons of experience. The newly signed players like all-rounder Harish Kumar, big hitter R Vivek, Aushik Srinivas, Vishal Vaidhya and Poiyamozhi M all make up for the lack of experience and will hope to change the tides for the underperforming Spartans.
Players to watch out:
HARISH KUMAR - RIGHT HAND BATTER/ RIGHT ARM PACER
- Second most expensive player in TNPL 2024 Auction – 15.4 Lakhs
- Fourth most wickets in TNPL – 59 wickets
- Excellent wicket taker in middle overs and slog overs – 27 wickets in overs 7-15 & 29 wickets in overs 16-20
- Only player in TNPL to score 500+ runs & take 40+ wickets
M POIYAMOZHI - RIGHT ARM PACER
- Fifth highest wicket taker in TNPL 2023 – 13 wickets
- Slog over specialist (16-20) in TNPL – 24 wickets, 13.6 SR
SQUAD
Retained Players: Abhishek S, M Ganesh Moorthi, Guru Sayee S, Jaganath Srinivas RS, Kavin R, Mohammed Adnan Khan, Sachin Rathi, Selva Kumaran N, Sunny Sandhu, Shijit Chandran
Players signed in the Auction: Harish Kumar, R Vivek, Aushik Srinivas, Robin Bist, Vishal Vaidhya, Poiyamozhi M, Rajan R, Yazh Arun Mozhi ME, Tharun Kumar, Sudhan Sanjeevi Kandepan
The 2018 champions of TNPL have had a couple of good seasons, making it to consecutive playoffs in 2022 & 2023. Like the Kovai Kings, they too have retained a large portion of their squad with the likes of Hari Nishaanth, Washington Sundar, Swapnil Singh and Murgan Ashwin still in the side.
They've signed TNPL veterans in NS Chaturved and Alexander R along with promising talents like Kiran Akash, Karthik Manikandan and Sasidev.
They will be hoping to continue the previous season's momentum and would want to right the wrongs they did in the playoff games last year.
Players to watch out:
GURJAPNEET SINGH - LEFT ARM PACER
- Joint second most wickets in TNPL 2023 – 15 wickets
- Successful in slog overs (16-20) in TNPL – 12 wickets
- Excellent with back of hand deliveries in TNPL – 9.2 overs, 7 wickets, 8 SR
HARI NISHAANT - LEFT HAND BATTER
- Best batter for Tamil Nadu in Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2023 – 5 inns, 146 runs, 136 SR, 1 fifty
- Low strike rate in last two editions of TNPL – 15 inns, 344 runs, 24.6 avg, 122 SR, 2 fifties
SQUAD
Retained Players: Aditya V, Ajay K Krishnan, Murugan Ashwin, Ayush M, Gurjapneet Singh, Hari Nishaanth C, J Kousik, Lokeshwar S, Rahul D, Sri Abisek S, Saravanan P, Washington Sundar, Swapnil K Singh
Players signed in the auction: NS Chaturved, Sasidev U, Alexander R, Akram Khan, Kiran Akash, Karthik Manikandan, Ajay Chetan
The Nellai Royal Kings have been one of the best batting sides in last couple of editions. With an attacking batting line up led by captain Arun Karthik and last season’s highest run scorer in Ajitesh G, the franchise from Tirunelveli will be hoping to have a great 2024 season as they have added notable names like Mokit Hariharan, R Silambarasan into the squad along with retained players like Sonu Yadav and Mohan Prasath, making them a good all-round side heading into the tournament.
Players to watch out:
G AJITESH - RIGHT HAND BATTER
- Highest run scorer in TNPL 2023 – 385 runs
- Excellent record while chasing – 7 inns, 298 runs, 99.3 avg, 167 SR, 2 fifties, 1 century
- Explosive batting against pace in TNPL 2023 – 9 inns, 198 runs, 99 balls, 1 out, 200 SR
ARUN KARTHIK - RIGHT HAND BATTER
- Second most successful batter in TNPL – 1885 runs
- Most 100s in TNPL – 3
- Most boundaries in TNPL – 274
SONU YADAV - RIGHT HAND BATTER/ RIGHT ARM PACER
- Third most wickets in slog overs (16-20) – 28 wickets
- Ability to pick wickets in all three phases
- Skilful in bowling yorkers, off cutters and can generate reverse swing
SQUAD
Retained Players: G Ajitesh, Arun Karthik, Arun Kumar SJ, Emmanuel Cherian B, Harish NS, Kabilan N, Lakshay Jain S, Mohan Prasath, Nidish Rajagopal, Rithik Easwaran S, Rohan J, Sonu Yadav, Sugendhiran P, Surya Prakash L
Players signed in the Auction: Silambarasan R, Mokit Hariharan, Gohul Moorthi, Gowtham V, Abilash AV, Kirubakar R
The Tiruppur franchise were the noisiest team during the auction as they signed two big players in R Sai Kishore (22 lakh) and T Natarajan (11.5 lakh). They also got in the services of Amit Sathvik and Mathivana P, who showed potential in the previous season.
They have an excellent batting order in the form of Tushar Raheja, Vijay Shankar and Anirudh Sita Ram.
Their bowling unit, too, looks tight with Tamil Nadu’s best spin duo in Sai Kishore and Ajit Ram handling spin department along pace spear heads in T Natarajan and P Bhuvaneswaran.
Players to watch out:
R SAI KISHORE - LEFT HAND BATTER/ LEFT ARM SPINNER
- Joint most expensive player in TNPL Auction 2024 – 22 Lakhs
- Highest wicket taker in TNPL – 73 wickets
- Good performance with bat in TNPL 2023 – 5 inns, 122 runs, 167 SR, 1 fifty
- Decent IPL 2024 – 5 inns, 7 wickets, 9.1 econ, 12.9 SR
T NATARAJAN - LEFT ARM PACER
- Best bowling average in TNPL (25+ inns) – 16.7
- Most economical pacer in TNPL (75+ overs) – 6.2
SQUAD
Retained Players: Ajit Ram S, Anirudh Sita Ram B, Bhuvaneswaran P, Ganesh S, Karuppusamy S, Manigandan S, Mohamed Ali S, Radhakrishnan S, Tushar Raheja, Vijay Shankar, Maan K Bafna
Players signed in the auction: R Sai Kishore, T Natarajan, Anovankar V, Ram Kumar R, Karthik Saran M, Amit Sathvik, Jeevanandam J, Rohit R, Mathivanan P
How are the venues going to behave?
Salem - Salem Cricket Foundation Ground
Matches: 19
Bat 1st – 11 | Bat 2nd - 8
Toss win bat – 5 | Toss win bowl – 14 |
Avg 1st inns score – 150/7 | Avg 1st inns winning score – 168/6
Coimbatore - SNR College Cricket Ground
Matches: 16
Bat 1st – 6 | Bat 2nd - 10
Toss win bat – 4 | Toss win bowl – 12
Avg 1st inns score – 166/6 | Avg 1st inns winning score – 190/5
Tirunelveli - Indian Cement Company Ground
Matches: 65
Bat 1st – 31 | Bat 2nd - 34
Toss win bat – 44 | Toss win bowl – 21
Avg 1st inns score – 154/7 | Avg 1st inns winning score – 165/6
Dindigul - NPR College Ground
Matches: 63
Bat 1st – 25 | Bat 2nd - 38
Toss win bat – 25 | Toss win bowl – 38
Avg 1st inns score – 156/7 | Avg 1st inns winning score – 175/6
Chennai – MA Chidambaram Stadium, Chepauk
Matches: 58
Bat 1st – 25 | Bat 2nd - 30
Toss win bat – 27 | Toss win bowl – 31
Avg 1st inns score – 150/7 | Avg 1st inns winning score – 167/6
Where can we watch TNPL 2024?
The eighth edition of TNPL will be televised on Star Sports 1, Star Sports 1 Tamil and digitally streamed on Fancode.
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