Murali Vijay on mission West Indies

Addressing the media on the second day of the camp for the Indian team at the National Cricket Academy in Bengaluru, the Tamil Nadu-born player gave an insight on the preparations for the West Indies tour and more. 

It has been a couple of good days for us. We are in Bengaluru with a purpose – preparing for the West Indies tour. Anil bhai gave us the freedom to work, for a couple of days, on whatever we got because of the rain. We have been having some quality sessions out there. 

I have been to the West Indies three times before so I have a fair idea about how it’s going to be there. But we don’t know what’s going to be given to us on that particular Test match so we got to be prepared as a unit because this is the start of our season. I’m looking forward to sticking to my basics and be as consistent I can this season. Hopefully, If I can do that, I’ll be happy at the end of it.

We had a great time with Ravi bhai and Anil bhai has taken charge and hopefully we can have a good time with him and learn lot of things from because he has been an unbelievable cricketer for the Indian team. 

Fitness will play a major part and we are part of it. We have our fitness regimen and we are following it, and hopefully we can stay fit throughout the season.

The West Indies is a great place to play cricket because it’s more of fun, and there is lot of competition inside. So you cannot ask for more as a sportsperson. We are really looking forward to this series to have a great time and come back with good memories. It’s a confidence booster for us to go there and execute our plans. There is a lot at stake for us. 

On playing with Kumble 

My first Test match was his last Test match so I couldn’t spend a lot of time with him. But I have been a great fan of his, and as a youngster who isn’t. It’s a great opportunity for us to talk to him about cricket and learn about his thought process about the game, and learn from that and move forward. It’s going to be a great time for us. 

I have not spoken to him about too many things, so I can’t comment on that. Over a period of time, I think it’s going to be good for us because he has some 900 international wickets under his belt. It’s going to be good because we would know what kind of things to expect in high pressure games. It’s going to be good for us as a batting unit. 

Last time my performance wasn’t good, overall the team did well. Hopefully, I can pull it off this time. It depends on the venue where we go and get to see the wickets. It gives an idea and you can pass it on to whoever wants it. 

On Kohli-Kumble partnership 

I can’t see anything ahead of me and talk. It has been only two days so it’s very early to comment on that. It’s going to be a great 12 months for us, that much I can guarantee you as a team. We are up for it and we want to be the best we can in these coming 12 months.