The Hindu : Sport / Cricket : Rejuvenated Andhra to take on Hyderabad

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Thursday, Dec 01, 2005

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Rejuvenated Andhra to take on Hyderabad

Sports Reporter

ANANTAPUR: A keen battle is on the cards at the picturesque Rural Development Trust Sports Centre grounds as host Andhra takes on Hyderabad in the Ranji Trophy Elite Group B match here on Thursday.

Andhra had conceded two points to Baroda in the lung opener last week and for Hyderabad, this is its first outing of the season. Andhra looks rejuvenated with the arrival of skipper Y. Venugopala Rao, who is back after completing his assignment for Board President's XI against Sri Lanka at Bangalore.

Hyderabad has made one change in its team, which played the semifinal against Indian Railways at New Delhi early this year, by roping in medium pacer Alfred Absolom in place of Vishnuvardhan. However, with V.V.S. Laxman on national duty and promising youngsters A.T. Rayudu and T. Suman opting to play for Andhra, the visitor's batting looks brittle. "But we have many youngsters raring to prove their mettle. Absence of Rayudu and Suman won't make any difference," said Hyderabad coach Rajesh Yadav.

Toss is crucial as the contest is on the extra strip, which is bereft of grass and looks full of runs. "In the first match against Baroda, we played on the first strip which had a green top. This would help batsmen who are willing to stay and play straight. From the third day, spinners would dominate," felt Andhra coach Abid Ali.

The final eleven of both the teams will be known only on Thursday morning.

The teams: Andhra (from): Y. Venugopala Rao (capt.), M.S.K. Prasad, Y. Gnaneswara Rao, K. S. Shahabuddin, A.S.K. Verma, A.T. Rayudu, T. Suman, K. Kumaraswamy, D. Kalyan Krishna, A.G. Praveen, M. Suresh, Md. Faiq, Y. Lakshman Kishore, Balajikrishna Singh. Coach: Abid Ali.

Hyderabad (from): Arjun Yadav (capt.), Daniel Manohar, Shashank Nag, Anirudh Singh, Vinay Kumar, Ibrahim Khaleel, Abinav Kumar, N.P. Singh, P. Pragyan Ojha, P. Indrasekhara Reddy, Kaushik Reddy, P.S.Niranjan, Amol Shinde, Alfred Absolom, Anup Pai. Coach: Rajesh Yadav.

Umpires: Sudeep Asnani & A.K.S. Giridharan

Match Referee: Suresh Deo

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