Boys showed character and hunger: Hyderabad coach Ravi Teja

After Hyderabad secured its second consecutive Buchi Babu crown, coach D. Ravi Teja was pleased with how his players responded to pressure situations through the tournament.

“It was a pretty good tournament for everyone. We did miss a few players who were away for the Duleep Trophy, but the boys showed character and hunger. The way the middle-order and the spinners responded was very encouraging,” said Ravi Teja after his team prevailed over TNCA President’s XI in the final on Tuesday.

The coach had special praise for Varun Goud, who topped the run charts (438) and clinched the Player-of-the-Tournament award.

“Varun, I feel, is very underrated. He should have been playing for a while now. For me, he’s the find of the season, and if he continues in the same way, he has a bright future,” the former Hyderabad player added.

At the same time, the 38-year-old felt there were areas where the team needed to improve. “One key thing is to make sure we close out games when we’re on top. Even in the final, we had a good start but then collapsed.”

Skipper Rahul Singh said that while it was a tougher campaign compared to last year, he was happy how his team fought back from difficult positions.

“We had many matches where we could have lost the lead or even the match. Even though the situations were tough, we pulled through. So, that was good to see, and it gives the team a huge confidence,” said Rahul.