Last November at Porvorim, Prasanth Parameswaran had troubled Kerala’s batsmen with his left-arm pace bowling in the Ranji Trophy match. The Goan new-ball bowler was also making a statement against his former team.
A year later, however, Prasanth is back home. And he is excited to play for Kerala once again, after a gap of two years, during which he represented Tamil Nadu and Goa.
“There is nothing like playing for your own home State,” Prasanth told The Hindu on Sunday. “I had expressed my interest to play for Kerala to the Kerala Cricket Association officials a few months ago. I am delighted to be back.”
The 31-year-old is also happy that he would be training in his hometown of Alappuzha; the Kerala Ranji Trophy team’s camp starts at the SD College Ground within a couple of days. “It is an excellent ground,” he said. “It is good enough to host Ranji matches.”
But all the Ranji matches are going to be played in neutral venues this season. “Yes, it is a bit disappointing to know that I would not be playing in Kerala this season, but playing your matches in neutral venues means every team has an equal chance,” he said. “No team will get home advantage.”
He is confident that Kerala could do well at those neutral venues. “Our team has become even stronger with the inclusion of professional players like Jalaj Saxena,” he said. “I feel we could qualify for the knock-out stage this season.”
He is expected to share the new ball with Sandeep Warrier. “I am looking forward to bowling in tandem with Sandeep,” said Prasanth, who had won the Man of the Match award on his IPL debut. “I am glad that I could work with many other young pace bowlers in Kerala.”
All those bowlers had attended a two-week long camp conducted by former Australian fast bowler Jeff Thomson at Krishnagiri, Wayanad. “It was a great camp,” he said.
“I gained a lot by working with a legend like Thomson; he suggested a small change in my run-up, which I found extremely useful. With the vast number of pace bowlers we have in Kerala, we should have more such camps.”
Prasanth feels the mixed-age tournament is a good idea. “It is an excellent opportunity for a cricketer as he gets to play in three-day matches,” he said. “A pace bowler has to play lots of longer matches.”
Looking back at his time with Tamil Nadu and Goa, he said he enjoyed the experience of being a professional. “I played all the eight matches for Goa,” he said. “Playing for Tamil Nadu was an ever better experience. It is not every day that you get to play in the Ranji Trophy final.”
