David Warner never batted in the nets: Vijay Shankar

It was just precisely what Tamil Nadu’s Vijay Shankar did over the last two months. After being drafted into the now defunct Chennai Super Kings in 2014, Vijay had to endure the toughest time by not finding a buyer in the subsequent year. But in 2016, the 25-year-old found himself in the ranks of Sunrisers Hyderabad and after a thrilling two-month ride, he was holding the coveted IPL trophy with glee. 

Although Vijay didn’t get a chance to feature in the playing XI, he took two catches, one of them was a blinder at deep midwicket to dismiss Dwayne Bravo of Gujarat Lions, and contributed to the team’s cause in his capacity. 

“It has been one of the best moments in my life. SRH is a great team and I had the best experience,” Vijay said, with a tinge of excitement and proudness in his voice.

In a chat with DT Next, Vijay opened up on a variety of topics:

The difference is, with CSK there were many stars. Around eight or nine players in the playing XI were big names. But with SRH, we didn’t have many but what was important was we stuck together and everyone chipped in with useful contributions. It was that attribute that made the unit click. 

It is always difficult to not play a single match over a period of two months. But, I learnt to be satisfied with what I was able to contribute, be it as a fielder too. The two catches I took, coming on as a substitute, contributed to the team’s cause and I am happy for that. I did feel that I could have played a couple of matches in the first half of the tournament but as we got to a winning combination, I knew tinkering with it wouldn’t be a good option. We had captains and big names of different countries (Kane Williamson, Eoin Morgan, Trent Boult) in the dugout and it was an enriching experience. 

A talk I had with Moises Henriques changed my outlook of the game completely. He told me that we were similar kind of players and if I had to get into the team, I had to replace him in the playing XI. He made me analyse the game in a different manner and the way he thinks in different situations is a quality I would like to imbibe. The way I take my game and career now after that chat is different. 

Warner never batted at the nets any day over the course of two months. We had training sessions initially where some of us would go early and get a hit or two. I used to warm up with the team and get to drills immediately. But as and when the tournament schedule became hectic, we didn’t train each and every day. 

I have made good friends Bhuvaneshwar Kumar, Karn Sharma and Deepak Hooda. We always sit together and hang out together after matches.