TN's formidable batting up against Maharashtra seamers

Match facts

February 25-March 1, 2015
Start time 0900 IST

Big picture

Bengal may have had a forgettable Ranji Trophy outing this season, but the die-hard cricket fans in Kolkata - and there are plenty - will expect some high-quality action when Tamil Nadu take on Maharashtra at the Eden Gardens.

The track is expected to be lively, which may work in favour of underdogs Maharashtra. While Tamil Nadu have played most of their matches this season on turning tracks, Maharashtra have thrived on seamer-friendly conditions. Their four-pronged pace attack of Samad Fallah, Anupam Sanklecha, Domnic Joseph and allrounder Shrikant Mundhe has delivered virtually every time so far this season and they would be keen to repeat last season's feat of an appearance in the final.

TN, on the other hand, have the likes of Abhinav Mukund, M Vijay and Dinesh Karthik to take on the in-form Maharashtra pacers. Aswin Crist and L Balaji will lead their pace attack and will hope to rattle a Maharashtra batting unit that has been inconsistent in the season so far.

In the spotlight

Kedar Jadhav single-handedly changed the course of Maharashtra's quarter-final against Andhra with a whirlwind 81 to walk away with the Man-of-the-Match award. The aggressive batsman will be looking to lead Maharashtra's charge yet again.

Vijay Shankar is possibly the least fancied name in the Tamil Nadu batting line-up but he has delivered with his limited opportunities this season. His average of 54 - with 378 runs in eight innings - is second only to M Vijay in the line-up and, as a right-arm medium-pacer, he has played the containing role whenever Tamil Nadu have gone in with none or one pacer.

Squads

Tamil Nadu: A Mukund (capt), M Vijay, U Sushil, B Aparajith, Dinesh Karthik (wk), B Indrajith, R Prasanna, L Balaji, Vijay Shankar, M Rangarajan, Rahil Shah, R Aushik Srinivas, M Shahrukh Khan, A Ashwin Crist, L Vignesh, Prasanth Parameswaran.

Maharashtra: Rohit Motwani (captain), Harshad Khadiwale, Swapnil Gugale, Kedar Jadhav, Ankit Bawne, Rahul Tripathi, Chirag Khurana, Shrikant Mundhe, Nikit Dhumal, Domnic Joseph, Samad Fallah, Sangram Atitkar, Anupam Sanklecha, Naushad Shaikh, Akshay Darekar.

Stats and trivia

• This would be the first time Tamil Nadu will face Maharashtra in neutral territory. During their previous 11 encounters (including one as Madras), Tamil Nadu have won four, lost three and drawn four.
• Harshad Khadiwale needs 53 runs to surpass the 5000-run mark in first-class cricket. The Maharashtra opener, with 633 runs, is the team's leading run-getter this season.

Teamspeak

"We know what they are capable of. Having seen the way they have played this season, we can't underestimate them. They are an excellent side."
WV Raman, Tamil Nadu coach

"The experience of playing and winning on an absolute green top in Lahli will stand us in good stead. I believe we have the best seam bowling attack in the country, and slowly all our boxes have been ticked off."
David Andrews, Maharashtra coach