Vijay Shankar To Lead Tamil Nadu In Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 After Dinesh Karthik Suffers Injury

All-rounder Vijay Shankar will captain the Tamil Nadu side in the upcoming Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 domestic tournament in place of Dinesh Karthik, who suffered an injury, the Tamil Nadu Cricket Association (TNCA) announced on Monday.

Dinesh Karthik had recently featured in the final of the Indian Premier League (IPL 2021) for Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) who lost the match to Chennai Super Kings (CSK) led by MS Dhoni by 27 runs, who captured their fourth IPL title. KKR was vying for their third title after winning the IPL trophy in 2012 and 2014.

Adithya Ganesh has been picked to replace Dinesh Karthik in the Tamil Nadu team, the TNCA said in a release. Wicketkeeper-batter N Jagadeesan has been named vice-captain of the team.

“Dinesh Karthik is said to be suffering from a knee injury. The state senior selection committee of the Tamil Nadu Cricket Association has replaced Adithya Ganesh in place of injured Dinesh Karthik, to play in the Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 Trophy for the Season 2021-2022,” Tamil Nadu selection committee chief S Vasudevan told PTI.

Tamil Nadu All-Rounder Washington Sundar To Miss The Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 Trophy As Well

Not only will Tamil Nadu miss out on the services of the experienced Dinesh Karthik, but they will also be missing all-rounder Washington Sundar, who has been recovering from a finger injury he had suffered in England during a practice match ahead of the ICC World Test Championship Final 2021.

He has been advised rest of six weeks by the NCA staff. Left-arm pacer T Natarajan, who missed the second phase of the IPL in the UAE after contracting Covid-19, is part of the 20-man Tamil Nadu squad. Apart from Natarajan, the bowling attack includes Sandeep Warrier, M Mohammed, J Kousik, and spinners R Sai Kishore, M Siddharth, and M Ashwin.

The tournament will be played at six centers – Lucknow, Guwahati, Baroda, Delhi, Haryana, and Vijayawada. The knockouts will be in Delhi from November 16 with the final slated for November 22. Following the SMAT, the Vijay Hazare Trophy 50-over competition will run from December 8 to 27. The BCCI has also planned to start the Ranji Trophy on January 13.

Also Read: Syed Mushtaq Ali T20: Ajinkya Rahane To Lead Mumbai, Prithvi Shaw Named Vice-Captain