New Delhi, Sep 3 — Cricketer Shahrukh Khan believes the Tamil Nadu Premier League (TNPL) has played a major role in the growth of cricket in the state, providing a platform for young players to showcase their talent and a pathway towards the Indian Premier League.

Shahrukh himself is among the players who have benefited from the TNPL platform. After spending nearly two decades in the Tamil Nadu cricket system, the hard-hitting batter has established himself as one of the state’s prominent white-ball players and an IPL cricketer.

The 2026 season marked another highlight in Shahrukh's TNPL journey as he guided Kovai Kings to their third championship. The team beat Madurai Panthers by 84 runs in the final held at MA Chidambaram Stadium on August 28. Andre Siddarth’s quick 82 off 47 balls contributed to a solid team total, and Kovai's bowlers dismissing Madurai for just 98.

For Shahrukh, however, the importance of the TNPL goes beyond his own success.

“TNPL has been a platform for a lot of players from Tamil Nadu, including me, Natarajan, Varun Chakravarthy, a lot of players,” Shahrukh said in an exclusive conversation with IANS.

He believes the tournament’s growth over the years has been significant and that its impact is now evident in the number of players from Tamil Nadu who have gone on to play in the IPL.

“And the way the tournament has grown over the years is just immense. And not just TNPL but the other leagues that happen around India as well. But the first domestic tournament for a state T20 was TNPL and very fortunate to be a part of this tournament,” he said.

The league, which began in 2016, has increasingly become an important fixture in the Tamil Nadu cricket calendar. For young players, it offers an opportunity to play alongside experienced domestic cricketers and to perform under pressure in front of a wider audience. Shahrukh feels that the process is continuing to work, with new players emerging every season.

“And every year, you see new talents coming up. I hope even this year, the IPL scouts see a few talents and picks so that the tournament grows even bigger next year,” he said.

Shahrukh has played cricket in the state’s circuit for around 20 years and has encountered a range of leadership styles across his age-group, league, domestic and IPL careers. He believes these experiences have helped him develop his own understanding of leadership. But when it comes to the foundation of his captaincy, Shahrukh looks closer to home.

“I think I have been in Tamil Nadu circuit for about 20 years now. So there are various captains that I have played under in league matches, the local league that happens here. And obviously, I have been playing age group cricket for a very long time. And played under a lot of captains in IPL as well, but the base foundation for me in terms of captaincy is the sort of cricket that we play here in Tamil Nadu, the league structure,” he said.

He specifically credited Ashwin Venkatraman, a prominent figure in the Tamil Nadu league circuit and a former associate of Kovai Kings, for aiding his understanding of the tactical aspects of captaincy.

“I have really looked up to a person, a captain called Ashwin Venkatraman. He is a player in Tamil Nadu league here. So he has been really vital in terms of how to go about in a game of cricket and how to read a batsman’s mind before he does something,” Shahrukh said.

His IPL experiences have shaped his leadership style. Shahrukh has shared dressing rooms with several seasoned captains and has watched how they manage various situations.

“And obviously, playing IPL, I have seen a lot of captains. And from afar, if you look at it, MS Dhoni has always been my idol in terms of captaincy. And the pattern in which I go about is whatever I have got from him,” he added.

Shahrukh's IPL 2026 season with Gujarat Titans was disappointing, leading to his removal from the playing XI during the tournament. He later disclosed that he had been battling a technical flaw in his batting for several months.

“Yeah, I was having a technical flaw in my batting. I had a technical flaw which was hampering my batting quite a lot from the last 7-8 months. I’ve really come back from IPL and worked on it. My front foot was going too far across which I never used to do that before,” he said.

His efforts following the IPL reignited his form in the TNPL. A notable achievement was his 17-ball half-century against Dindigul Dragons, ranking among the quickest in the tournament. As the next IPL season approaches, the Tamil Nadu batsman aims for his TNPL revival to boost his performance in India's premier T20 competition.

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