Both the teams are pretty even on paper and on the basis of their current form. However, considering a slightly better batting line-up, NRK should start this match as favorites against LKK.
League
Tamil Nadu Premier League 2023
Match
Lyca Kovai Kings vs Nellai Royal Kings
Date
12th July 2023
Time
7:15 PM IST
Last match at the venue saw second team chasing down 186.
NRK is the only side which have defeated LKK this season.
Ajitesh scored a century in NRK’s win over LKK earlier in the league stage.
Poiyamozhi took three wickets in that game against LKK and is currently NRK’s best bowler this season with 13 wickets.
Suresh Kumar will be a player to watch out for considering the surface at Tirunelveli.
Suresh scored 64 off 29 in his last outing at Tirunelveli earlier in the league stage.
B Sachin will be another key player considering the absence of Sai Sudharsan at three. The 19-year-old is coming into this match on the back of two back to back half centuries.
Sachin scored 67 in his last outing at Tirunelveli.
Shahrukh Khan took 2 wickets and scored half century last time he played at Tirunelveli.
Ajitesh have three consecutive half centuries while coming into this match. Law of averages might come into play.
Pick more top order players from the team batting second in at least one of your XIs.
Pick more pacers who are expected to bowl in the death.
The pitch for the final at Triunelveli is expected to be a good one for the batters. The surface will offer good carry and will eventually get better for the batters. The first innings is expected to be around 195. Team winning the toss should bowl first.
There is no rain predicted during the match time in Tirunelveli ahead of this game.
There is no major news reported from both sides. Sai Sudharsan continues to remain unavailable for LKK.
Nellai Royal Kings Playing XI: Arun Karthik (c), L Suryaprakash, Ajitesh G, Nidhish Rajagopal, Rithik Easwaran (wk), Sonu Yadav, NS Harish, M Poiyamozhi, Mohan Prasath, Sandeep Warrier, Lakshay Jain
Probable Impact Player: P Sungendiran
Lyca Kovai Kings Playing XI: S Sujay, J Suresh Kumar (wk), B Sachin, Ram Arvindh, Atheeq Ur Rahman, U Mukilesh, Shahrukh Khan (c), M Mohammed, Manimaran Siddharth, Jhatavedh Subramanyan, Valliappan Yudheeswaran
Probable Impact Player: Thamarai Kanan
Ajitesh G: Ajitesh is definitely going start this match as one of the best captaincy choice. The young wicket-keeper batter is currently the highest run-scorer in the tournament with 384 runs at a strike rate of more than 160 in nine matches. He is coming into this match on the back of three consecutive half centuries.
Shahrukh Khan: Shahrukh Khan’s bowling performance has been one of the stories of TNPL 2023. He has been the best bowler for the major part of the tournament. In eight games, Shahrukh has 14 wickets at a mindblowing strike rate of 9.85. In addition, his batting abilities makes him one of the must picks for this game.
Sonu Yadav: Sonu Yadav will be another safe captaincy choice ahead of this match. His all-round abilities makes him different from the crowd. He has made contribution with both bat and ball for Nellai Royal Kings this season. In nine games, Yadav has 9 wickets and 115 runs with the bat.
J Subramanyan: Subramanyan has been selected by only 7% of the teams as of writing this. He will be a the best differential pick for this match considering his wicket taking abilities in the middle overs.
Rithik Easwaran: Even after two heroic cameos Easwaran is not there in most of the teams ahead of the TNPL final. He will be worth taking risk considering his good form currently which can make a huge difference both on the field and to your points tally.
Lakshay Jain: Lakshay Jain has bagged only one wicket in his last four games. He will be a risky choice ahead of this game considering his current wicket-taking form. It is advisable to avoid picking the off spinner in any of your XIs for this match.
If LKK bat first
Complete team with three of Arun, Easwaran, Siddharth, Mohan
If NRK bat first
Complete team with three of Suresh, Sujay, Warrier, Subramanyan
If LKK bat first
Complete team with three of Ajitesh, Easwaran, Subramanyan, Mohammed
If NRK bat first
Complete team with three of Sujay, Siddharth, Yudheeswaran, Warrier
Both the teams are pretty even on paper and on the basis of their current form. However, considering a slightly better batting line-up, NRK should start this match as favorites against LKK.
