TNPL 2018: Karaikudi Kaalai appoint S Badrinath as their head coach 

Former India batsman Subramaniam Badrinath has been appointed as the head coach of the Tamil Nadu Premier League side Karaikudi Kaalai. Badrinath, who was part of the Karaikudi side over the last two seasons, hung up his boots earlier this season and has decided to stay with them as the team's head coach.

This will be Badri's maiden stint as the coach and the former Tamil Nadu captain is really excited about his new role.

"I am excited but I definitely think it is going to be challenging for me. I am looking forward to it. As you said, it is a new role for me as a head coach and it will have its own challenges. In the TN Premier League, there will be a lot of youngsters and for me, dealing with them, giving them proper roles and bringing the best out of them will be a big challenge.

"At the same time, it is what I am looking forward to. I have been with Karaikudi Kaalai for the last two years, I have led them in those years and I have been looking to build upon that and keep up the good work. Karaikudi started as the eight pick in the first season and from there, we went on to finish in the top-4 last season. So, I think the important thing is to keep up the good work and continue from where we left last year," Badri told Sportskeeda.

After having played a majority of his career in Tamil Nadu, Badri will know a majority of the cricketers, who are playing in the domestic leagues in the state. He also said that dealing with the age-group cricketers will be a big challenge for him as he has detached himself a bit from them.

"Definitely. I have played a lot of cricket in Tamil Nadu. I have played a lot with the first-class cricketers but I am a little bit detached from the under-19, under-22 and under-23 cricketers. I think that is where my challenge will be, ie. to understand the youngsters with whom I have not played with. It is very easy for me to deal with the players I know and the same cannot be said about the players who I haven't played with. That's where my challenge comes in. I have got a great bunch of support staffs. Our assistant coach PC Prakash is involved with junior cricket and his inputs will be helpful for me in dealing with them. Having said that, I am looking forward to it," he added.

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