Follow UsSeeking to shake up a stagnant system, the Tamil Nadu Cricket Association (TNCA) made a bold move in 2023 by hiring Sulakshan Kulkarni as their head coach. The decision was praised as a step in the right direction, as someone outside the system was expected to inject new life into the team.
But over the next year, the state had its share of success, reaching the semi-final stage of the Vijay Hazare Trophy and the Ranji Trophy. However, Kulkarni’s stint will be unfortunately remembered for the wrong reasons when he slammed the Tamil Nadu skipper Sai Kishore for making the ‘wrong decision’ at the toss in the Ranji Trophy semi-final in 2024.
“The way we played, we could have done better. We won the toss, and we should have bowled. We planned everything and decided to play three seamers by dropping a batter who had done well. The main idea was that if we win the toss, we will bowl,” Kulkarni said, looking back at the toss.
So, in Kulkarni’s words, what went wrong for Tamil Nadu during that season?
“Nothing went wrong (with Tamil Nadu). I’ll tell you honestly that I really enjoyed my time with Tamil Nadu from the bottom of my heart. I tried to bring in something different, in my own way. I said, ‘Yes, we will bring the youngsters, they are the future’. We got results, and the same youngsters are doing really well now,” Kulkarni now told Cricket.com.
“We did really well, we qualified for two semi-finals, and a Ranji Trophy semi after a long time. I enjoyed those moments during my time with the Tamil Nadu side. Apart from that one moment in the semi-final, I really enjoyed my moments with TN,” he added.
However, under Kishore’s leadership, the state has made stellar progress over the last year, with several youngsters like Andre Siddarth, Vimal Khumar, CV Achyuth, Boopathi Vaishna Kumar, and Tushar Raheja, amongst many others, getting their due under the sun.
Kulkarni revealed that these youngsters should be given a long rope, and that’s how Tamil Nadu can return to being a force to reckon with.
“TNCA have always been serious about cricket, apart from that one decision [toss], which went off; whatever has happened has happened. I really enjoyed my time. They have the potential, and if they groom talents properly, they should give more time to them; they will be a force to reckon with.
“Seniors have been playing for a long time; they need a change. If you look at Mumbai, the think-tank always feels that if a player isn’t good enough to represent the country, are they good enough to win trophies for Mumbai? If they don’t win trophies for Mumbai, they will move away.
“I have not seen it in Tamil Nadu, because some senior players have been playing for so many years, and not representing the country. My thought during my stint was to give youngsters an opportunity. In one year, you can’t make too many changes; it is not a magic wand. I started the process, it would have taken at least three years,” he said.
One such youngster who has been seriously dominating domestic cricket is 19-year-old Siddarth, who was recently called up to South Zone’s squad for the Duleep Trophy 2025 final against Central Zone.
Despite making his debut at 18, Siddarth has already made a stellar start to his first-class career, with 612 runs in his first Ranji Trophy 2024-25 season, averaging 68.00, including smashing a stellar 106 against Chandigarh, proving his potential.
“If you look at them now, the same set of youngsters are doing well. For eg, look at Andre Siddarth, he is only a 16 or 17-year-old boy [19], but he’s very promising. Instead of someone who is not doing well, why not give that spot to a youngster?” he questioned.
“After some time, he will play for the country as well. If you give him opportunities, he may even play for India A or even India in a year or two.”
With that being said, all Kulkarni asked from the current selectors is ‘trust the talents to do their job’, as they aim to lift their third Ranji Trophy, their first since 1987/88.
“There are quite a few talented youngsters like that in TN. They just need to get their fair opportunities. You should trust them enough to do the job,” he reckoned.