Ranji Trophy 2019-20: R Ashwin wants better exposure for Tamil Nadu's youngsters after Ranji struggles

The premier off-spinner is worried over the health of Tamil Nadu's first-class game.

Having never been a top-flight, all-conquering domestic first-class team, Tamil Nadu can definitely try to make better use of its experienced seniors and provide exposure to high-quality training facilities and surfaces to its youngsters in the first-division cricket, believes premier India off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin. 

Tamil Nadu has suffered two chastening defeats to Karnataka and Himachal Pradesh at the start of this Ranji Trophy season and one of its stalwarts is really worried about the trend of such results. 

Read Also: Karthik confronts Nair after intense Tamil Nadu-Karnataka tussle

"I don't know where to start and where to end, to be honest, because I don't think there is any lack of effort," Ashwin told reporters on Friday (December 20). 

"I feel there is probably too much inexperience. Losing three players [Dinesh Karthik, M Vijay and Vijay Shankar to injuries], who were batsmen with experience, from the last game didn't help."

"We were outplayed in both the games, especially on the batting front. I've spoken to the selectors. In the next couple of years, we need to pick 15-20 [players] and play them come what may. That's the only way forward."

Interestingly, in months preceding this one, the state finished runners-up in both the Vijay Hazare Trophy and Syed Mushtaq Ali T20. However, that form didn't last come the red-ball version under all-rounder Vijay Shankar, who was appointed the captain for the first two games amid controversial circumstances after Dinesh Karthik relinquished his post and the likes of Ashwin and Murali Vijay weren't considered. 

"It's a rebuilding phase; I don't think we are ready," Ashwin said. "It cannot start and stop with individuals. It runs deeper. The exposure to play swing bowling is lacking. We need to go to events like the KSCA tournament. That was a major part of my growth as a cricketer. I also feel it is time to revive MJ Gopalan Trophy (an annual first-class match between a Tamil Nadu XI and a Sri Lankan XI, last played in 2007-08)."

"It's not like you send back two players tomorrow and get somebody else. That's not going to change things. We need to understand this is not going to change overnight. Red-ball cricket is a different kettle of fish. In white ball, all the seniors were there after the group league. That made things look hunky-dory. But we need to be honest with ourselves."

(Inputs from ESPNcricinfo)