In the cutthroat competition that is the Ranji Trophy, Tamil Nadu head coach Yo Mahesh knows full well that a single good result means little without a swift encore.

Fresh off a comprehensive victory over Uttarakhand, he wants his wards to “take maximum points at home” and make it two wins in a row at the MAC Stadium. 

However, the preparations for the Elite Group-D fixture against Railways have been far from ideal.

“The rain played its part, and we weren’t able to practice as much as we would have liked. Even we haven’t seen the pitch yet… it’s still under covers,” Yo Mahesh said on Sunday, the eve of the third-round match.

When asked if he will bring in an extra seamer or make his batters score faster to push for a victory, Yo Mahesh replied: “An extra pacer is certainly an option, but we need to assess our overall balance and check the weather forecast. In cricket, there’s a famous saying, ‘condition is King, and you cannot beat the King’. That said, I’m optimistic we’ll get a full match, perhaps with a minor delay similar to the last game.”

An asset‘

On opener R. Vimal Khumar, who got out for a duck in the previous encounter, the head coach said: “We’ve given him a lot of freedom and space. For a player like Vimal, that’s crucial because he’s an asset to the squad. It was unfortunate that he missed the first match, as an India player like Sai Sudharsan was available”.