Maharashtra vs Tamil Nadu Prediction: A draw here?

Cricket has been caught in the T20 frenzy but the long form of the game still holds a lot of appeal. This has been a great season of regional cricket and there is perhaps no Test cricket league better than the Ranji Trophy which continues to produce talent that has given a lot of trouble to players that are groomed in much pacier conditions. BCCI tweaked its approach some years ago and produced such depth through Ranji that India won against Australia in Australia with a second/third string squad. 

Maharasthra comes into the game after drawing the game against Assam. Assam batted first and made 274 Manoj Ingale, Ashay Palkar, and Pradeep Dadhe picked up three wickets each for Maharashtra. But then Maharashtra saw Kedhar Jadhav rack up 283 points and made 594 runs for nine wickets, declaring the innings. Then Assam braved out the second innings, playing out 121 Overs.

Maharashtra has now won two games and has drawn two which has brought them to 16 points. Maharashtra’s batting has been deep and they have had players Ankit Bawne, Nausheed Sheikh, Kedhar Jadhav, and Pavan Veer all stepping up during different games. Seamer Pradeep Dadhe has been consistently striking while his seam-ball partner Ashay Palkar has also been getting it done. The spin department will need to up it further.

Tamil Nadu comes into the game after avoiding a scare as they drew their game against Mumbai. Tamil Nadu had a big collapse in the first innings, getting all out for mere 144 runs as the top order succumbed to Tushar Deshpande. Mumbai then made 481 runs and was down by 337 runs, Tamil Nadu had to fight against time to avoid an innings defeat. Their middle order ensured that a lot of distance was covered as Baba Indrajith, Pradosh Ranjan Paul, and Vijay Shankar hit centuries.

Mumbai was given 212 runs to chase in the last season and Mumbai reached 132 runs for three wickets as Tamil Nadu escaped with a draw. Tamil Nadu has one of the deepest middle orders with stars like Baba Aparjith, Baba Indrajith, and Vijay Shankar whereas Sai Sudharshasn has been a great influence at the top. Bowling-wise, Tamil Nadu hasn’t done that great of a job with the exception of Ravisrinivisan Sai Kishore, but mostly, the bowlers have not been in a great rhythm.

Maharashtra has shown that they are not willing to pave way for the opposition at any cost whereas Tamil Nadu has given too many chances. The major difference between the two teams seems to be that Maharashtra has a much better pace attack. Batting-wise, honors seem to be even and that means that there is also a higher likelihood of a draw here. Still for the sake of it, if there is a win, I”d give Maharashtra the advantage.