UTCA coach Rajeev Nayyar expects Chandigarh boys to come good

Chandigarh, October 29

UTCA coach Rajeev Nayyar is confident of a good show by his team in the upcoming Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 Trophy.

Squad: Manan Vohra (Captain), Shivam Bhambri, Sarul Kanwar, Ankit Kaushik, Kunal Mahajan, Gaurav Puri, Gurinder Singh, Bhagmender Lather, Arpit Singh, Arjit Singh, Jaskarandeep Singh Buttar, Rahul Sharma, Jagjit Sandhu, Shrestha Nirmohi, Parmesh Kumar, Yuvraj Chaudhary, Taranpreet Singh, Jaskaranveer Singh Sohi, Gaurav Gambhir, Amrit Lubana

A former Himachal Pradesh cricketer, Nayyar said he expected the team to do well in the tournament as they played a good amount of practice matches to be ready for the tournament.

“The team is looking good. We have a good mix of experience and youth. It will be a great experience for all of us,” said Nayyar.

When asked about dropping few players, including opener Arslan Khan, the coach said: “I am not the right person to comment on the issue. It’s completely up to the selectors… whom to select and whom to drop.”

Arslan made a name for himself in the U-23 age group, scoring 700 runs in 11 matches at an average of 70, including five centuries and a couple of half centuries.

It will be Chandigarh’s first tournament under experienced Nayyar, who remained active in First Class cricket for nearly 20 years.

“I have been in good terms with all the team members. We have got good depth in batting – which is a positive sign. Our players have played for different states and are experienced enough to handle any kind of pressure,” said Nayyar, who is the first cricketer from Himachal Pradesh to represent India A against South Africa, New Zealand and the West Indies.

He also represented India B in the Challenger Trophy.

“I have been to Chandigarh many a times and also played at the Sector 16 Cricket Stadium. I must admit, we have talent and all we need is to perform at this platform,” said Nayyar.

The Elite E group comprises Chandigarh, Hyderabad, UP, Uttarakhand, Delhi and Saurashtra.

Chandigarh will play their first match against UP on November 4, followed by Delhi on November 5 and Hyderabad on November 6. The side will face Saurashtra on November 8 before meeting Uttarakhand on November 9. — TNS