ITT VS DD FINAL

Eventually, the long presentation is over and Sai Kishore gets ready with his team to lift the TNPL trophy! It has been a great season for them, to say the least and even though they did not top the table, the Dindigul team owners called them as the team of the tournament. Pop goes the confetti as the players are overjoyed. Tough luck for Dindigul, their fourth final, but a third loss. As Ashwin said, maybe, the pressure of the final got to many players. But as always, there is always a winner and a learner. Every team would have learnt a lot from this season and will hope to come back harder next season. As for you guys, thank you so much for following our coverage and we hope that you enjoyed the same. Until next time, ADIOS! TAKE CARE!

The victorious captain of Idream Tiruppur Tamizhans, SAI KISHORE, informs us that many players in his unit were playing a final but they did not show any signs of pressure. Credits the management and the scouting team for picking such players. On the difference between the IPL-winning Sai Kishore and a TNPL-winning Sai Kishore, that too, as a captain, Kishore says that this season, he had to manage the players and himself. Stresses that as a captain, he had to take care of his own performance along with those of the others and says that he is still learning. On the team, Sai says that the experienced guys made it clear on the first day that they would bowl the business overs, citing Natarajan in particular, explaining that from the second game, they had a set group of bowlers at the death. Praises the openers for batting consistently and names a few youngsters for gelling well.

The skipper of Dindigul Dragons, RAVICHANDRAN ASHWIN, thanks the crowd for receiving his team very nicely here. On a pretty big defeat, Ashwin manages a smile and says that his biggest concern this season was how they bowled and fielded. Admits that batting was always an issue and it just slipped a bit too much in the final. Stresses that there are a lot of youngsters coming up and the management will see what can be done with them next year. On the team's brand of cricket this year, Ash says that they stuck true to what they are as a franchise, throwing up new names and backing them. Adds that he believes in looking more at opportunities than what is lost. Praises a few players who turned up after a long season of the IPL and fought off injuries to play well. On the younger players, RA rues the injuries that hit them badly this season but finds positives in their replacements doing exceedingly well. Personally feels that a lot of players in this game were under the pressure of the final. Explains that many of these players have not played under floodlights and suggests to the curators that the pitches can be a bit quicker, because those are the differences between playing in the IPL and other tournaments. On Tiruppur's success, Ashwin cheekily says that the Tiruppur management hit Dindigul hard at the auction table, going hard after Esakkimuthu A while Dindigul also wanted him badly, but praises Sai Kishore for leading them brilliantly. Admits that Tiruppur's batting came up superbly and Dindigul just did not have the arsenal to stop them. Ends by congratulating the Tiruppur unit for winning their maiden TNPL title.

The match officials get their medallions.

Nellai Royal Kings' SONU YADAV receives the Purple Cap for picking up 16 wickets in the season, at an average of 12.81.

IDream Tiruppur Tamizhans' TUSHAR RAHEJA HAS BEEN NAMED THE PLAYER OF THE MATCH AND THE TOURNAMENT. He also gets the Orange Cap en route, narrowly missing out on becoming the first player to reach 500 runs in a season of the TNPL. Raheja says that he tried to tell himself that it is just another match and tried to stay as calm as possible. On his opening success with Amith Sathvik, Tushar says that he has been enjoying batting with Sathvik and credits the management for giving them the freedom to play a particular brand of cricket over the last 2-3 years. On being asked what's so special this season, TR says that he had an eye on the Orange Cap after missing out last time but more than anything, everyone just looked to play as a team and the way Sai Kishore has led the team, it was outstanding. On the team's spirit, Tushar Raheja says that from the first match, the players or management did not talk about winning or qualifying. Stresses that they just tried to play a good brand of cricket. Details that it is a very young team and is amazed that it is showing results. On being asked whether he is ready for the IPL, Raheja feels shy and says that he wants to focus on his first class season for now.

... THE PRESENTATION ...

Finally, the find of the season, Esakkimuthu A comes up for a chat. Esakkimuthu says that he is very happy. Explains that people who have helped him have come to the stadium so he is overawed. Thanks everyone and is happy to have won the final. Details that the Tamil Nadu Cricket Association has helped guys like him a lot. Adds that the captain Sai Kishore has also helped everyone. Ascertains that unity is the reason for this team's success. On his skipper, Sai Kishore, Esakkimuthu says that Kishore was the one who gave him confidence, boosting him every now and then. On his experience with the squad, Esakkimuthu says that he enjoyed his work with the team. Hopes to enjoy next season as well.

Next up, is Mohan Prasath. Says that this is his first TNPL trophy, so is very happy. On picking up his 50th wicket for Tiruppur, Prasath says that he started his TNPL career with the Tamizhans only, before moving away for a couple of years. But he stresses that now, he is back here and says that it is a great feeling to win the trophy. On skipper Sai Kishore, Mohan says that to have a bowler as a captain is an advantage to bowlers as he gave a lot of freedom. Details that Kishore allowed the players to do what they wanted and encouraged them to shut out the outside noise. Brings this to our attention that in almost every match, the Tiruppur unit picked up at least 8 wickets or more.

Amith Sathvik is up for a chat next. Says that he is very happy. Adds that this is his first win in a final and this will stay for life in memory. Gives a big thank you to the management for backing him. Details that they told him that he is a champion player and backed him to the hilt.

C V Achyuth gets a chance to speak as well. On not having played many matches this season, Achyuth says that definitely everyone is enjoying with the team winning and even though he didn't play much, he is enjoying with his team. Affirms that he will definitely have a party, letting everyone know that the management told the players well in advance that there will be a party whether they won or lost!

Mathivannan M is next up to share his feelings. Says that he is very happy but adds that they have done hard work for 3 years. Calls out nearly 32 people who have been involved and thanks the entire support staff. On the fielding in the final, Mathivannan thanks the fielding coach for making the players field a lot with tennis balls. On the party tonight, Mathivannan says that he is enjoying well as it does not matter whether his team wins or not. Confirms that the players will have a blast tonight. On whether the toss mattered or not, Mathivannan says that it did not matter to anyone as everyone just focussed on playing cricket and that's what they did.

Mohamed Ali is up for a chat now. He says that he has been in the team for 3 years and this is his first trophy. Feels that the squad put good effort for all the 3 years, so is happy to have finally got the right result.

T Natarajan is up for a chat. Says that he is very happy and credits everyone for doing well. Stresses that from the start of the tournament, the Tiruppur unit was like a family, with a lot of youngsters. Calls those youngsters as sharp-minded people, as they understood everything pretty quickly, so it was easier for the seniors to mentor them. On the massive victory margin, Nattu says that they just tried to stick to the basics and played this like any other game. Affirms that they did not put pressure on themselves and put the result out of their mind, focussing on just giving 100 percent effort. On the blistering opening start by the Tiruppur openers, Natarajan says that they really played well. Feels that their opening burst just put the opposition way and has a feeling that Tushar Raheja seems to have a chance for the next level.

Come the run chase, one feels that the match ended even before the second innings began. Having got injured while fielding, Shivam Singh was stretchered off and though there was no official confirmation, we did suspect that he will not come out to bat. That disturbed the opening combination of Ashwin and Shivam, which had scored a lot of runs this season. They just kept losing wicket after wicket and got bundled out inside the 15th over, just about scraping past 100. As opposed to Dindigul who struggled with the ball, Tiruppur provided a combined bowling display with everyone doing well, winning by a massive margin of 118 runs.

It just seemed like Tiruppur's night. They started bang bang from the word go, with the openers Amith Sathvik and Tushar Raheja just flaying the ball to all parts. They hammered 69 in the Powerplay but did not stop there. The opening stand got 121 in 10.4 overs and though they slowed down in the second half, that blitz in the first half more than made up for it. Sathvik was the one who took the initiative, blasting 65 from 34 balls, while Raheja tried batting deep, making a fine 77 (46). There was a bit of momentum loss in the middle but the middle order chipped in to take the total to 220, the highest in a TNPL match.  It was a tough outing for Dindigul's bowlers as no one could find his mark, except maybe for Periyaswamy and Karthik Saran to an extent.

Firecrackers burst out aloud. The IDREAM TIRUPPUR TAMIZHANS are besides one another in joy. They are swarming the outfield and the crowd is beside itself as well. A team which never made it to the final in the previous seasons came out triumphant in the final. They end their campaign with 6 wins on the trot, stamping their authority over Dindigul.

Shivam Singh is unfit to take any more part in the match and is given as absent hurt.

OUT! BHUVANESHWAR V IS RUN OUT! Landed around off, Shashidharan R punches it towards cover. The batters go for the quick single but Esakkimuthu A charges onto the ball to his right, picks the ball up and fires a direct hit at the keeper's end. The Tiruppur players start to celebrate even before the umpire raises his finger! IDREAM TIRUPPUR TAMIZHANS WIN BY 118 RUNS AND ARE THE 2025 TNPL CHAMPIONS!