Tamil Nadu opener Murali Vijay looked a happy person when his coach V.B. Chandrasekhar congratulated him on his selection to the Indian Test squad.
When approached for his reaction, Vijay said he was very happy to be back in the team. “It is a dream for any cricketer to play for the country. And making a comeback is that much sweeter,” he said. “I don’t know when I will be joining the team, but I am very keen to get back into that ambience.”
India will play England in the first Test at Ahmedabad from November 15.
Vijay was out for 15, falling to a beauty from Alok Mangaraj in the Ranji match against Odisha, on a pitch that had grass. It will be difficult for Vijay to be in the playing XI against England. The 15-member squad has two established openers in Gautam Gambhir and Virender Sehwag. Ajinkya Rahane is the third opener and Vijay will be the fourth.
“I worked really very hard over the last six months. I am happy that it has paid off. Now it is my job to do well for the country whenever I am given the opportunity,” he said. “I feel like going out with the bat and start playing.”
Mixed one
The new season was a mixed one so far for the Tamil Nadu player. He scored 266 against Ranji Trophy champion Rajasthan in the Irani Trophy at Bangalore in September. He got his second century of the season in the NKP Salve Challenger Trophy when he hit 155 for India ‘B’ against the ‘A’ side and a 93 against Bengal in the next game.
Thereafter, runs seem to have dried up for this 28-year-old. Vijay, who made his Test debut against Australia in the fourth and final game at Nagpur in 2008, played his 12th Test against the West Indies in West Indies last year.
He has 609 Test runs to his credit with an average of 30.45 with 139 being his highest score.
