Muttiah Muralitharan to mentor TNPL team

Indian Express: After being part of the Sunrisers Hyderabad unit during the Indian Premier League, former Sri Lanka spinner Muttiah Muralitharan is all set to play the role of mentor of a side in the Tamil Nadu Premier League (TNPL). Muralitharan has been named the mentor of the VB Thiruvallur Veerans franchise. The second edition of the TNPL will be played in July.

“Muralitharan will be the mentor for Thiruvallur Veerans. It is something we never dreamt of, nor was it planned,” Thiruvallur Veerans’ owner V.B. Chandrasekhar, a former Indian player and selector, told PTI.

“The team required someone experienced to guide the boys and we felt Murali, with his vast knowledge of the game, could fill that role,” he added.

Muralitharan holds the record for most wickets in Test cricket with 800 wickets and also the most in ODIs with 534 wickets for Sri Lanka. He has also worked as spin consultant with the Australian team.

In the first season, Veerans fell short of a semis berth due to poor net run-rate. Chandraskhar said that Murali is likely to be with the team throughout the tournament.

“Murali is expected to be with the team for the entire duration of the tournament,” Chandrasekhar said adding, “It was a nice gesture on the part of such a big cricketer to agree to be part of a State league.”

“He is a good team man and I am sure the Veerans players will learn a lot by being with him. Murali has a wealth of experience, having played at the highest level and coached various teams. He can pass on a lot of knowledge to the young squad,” Chandrasekhar said.

The Veerans coaching staff includes former Indian bowler B Arun as coach.