The youngster has recently made an appearance in Tests at the highest level.
India youngster Sai Sudharsan has been named as the vice-captain of his domestic side, Tamil Nadu for the upcoming season of the Vijay Hazare Trophy. The Tamil Nadu Cricket Association (TNCA) announced the squad for the tournament, entrusting Sudharsan with the responsibilities of vice-captaincy. Narayan Jagadeesan, who has been around the side for a long time will lead the side.
The Vijay Hazare Trophy is set to commence from December 24 and will be played till January 18 next year. The five-time champions Tamil Nadu are placed in Elite Group A, along with Karnataka, Pondicherry, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Kerala and Tripura. The team will be itching to start their campaign on a positive note, unlike their domestic season so far.
Sai Sudharsan will have a huge role to play in resurrecting the fortunes of his domestic side – who are not having the best of seasons so far in other formats. In the Ranji Trophy, Tamil Nadu are already out of the qualification race. They have conceded a lead in two of their games, and have also lost two games outright. The team is languishing at the seventh spot with just five points.
In the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy (SMAT), the Tamil Nadu side failed to surpass the league stage for the fourth year in a row, winning only three of their seven games. To add to that, they lost to Rajasthan in the pre-quarterfinals of the Vijay Hazare Trophy last year, and will be motivated to salvage some pride.
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The 24-year-old from Tamil Nadu is a force to reckon with in domestic cricket. The fact that he was entrusted with the No.3 responsibilities for India at the highest level in the longest format speaks volumes of his ability and temperament with the bat. That being said, he will have to make full use of his experience so far and guide his side in the competition.
In 28 List A matches so far, Sai Sudharsan has scored 1,396 runs with a staggering average of 60.69 which is appreciable. He has registered a best score of 154 and boasts of a strike-rate near to 100 – which indicates that he can keep the scoreboard ticking. To add to that, the Tamil Nadu vice-captain holds six hundreds and six fifties to his name in List A cricket, which is no mean feat.
One of the things that have been the highlight of the squad announcement is the fact that players like Sandeep Warrier and T. Natarajan have not found a place in the 16-member squad. Moreover, Shahrukh Khan, who was dropped midway through SMAT has also not found a place in the side. The association has rewarded seven players who were part of the Under-23 squad that won the BCCI one-day competition.
N. Jagadeesan (Capt.), B. Sai Sudharsan (Vice-capt), B. Indrajith, Pradosh Ranjan Paul, C. Andre Siddarth, M. Boopathi Vaishna Kumar, S. Mohamed Ali, S.R. Athish, R. Sai Kishore, Sachin Rathi, Gurjapneet Singh, C.V. Achyuth, G. Govinth, R. Sonu Yadav, Sunny Sandhu, V.S. Karthick Manikandan.
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