‘I told selectors to drop me after four ducks’ – Murali Vijay recalls rocky start before India breakthrough

‘I told selectors to drop me after four ducks’ – Murali Vijay recalls rocky start before India breakthrough (Photo Source: Twitter)

Former Indian cricketer Murali Vijay reflected on his early cricketing journey, recalling his Tamil Nadu debut as the most significant milestone of his career. He said he felt truly accomplished the moment he received his state cap. However, the start wasn’t smooth, Vijay registered four ducks in the Under-22s, a phase that made him question whether he belonged at the professional level.

At one point, the opening batter even asked selectors to drop him, believing the standard was too high for him at that stage. But with time, Vijay built a reputation for converting starts into big scores. One of his most memorable knocks came in a mammoth 462-run opening partnership with Abhinav Mukund, a performance that paved the way for his Test debut in 2008-09 as a replacement for Gautam Gambhir.

“It’s the biggest achievement I’ve ever had playing for Tamil Nadu. When the cap came to me, that was something else for me, and I felt a sense of accomplishment. I felt I finally made it. So I played under 22 and got four ducks, and I felt like this level is too high for me. I didn’t play, I didn’t get exposed to the professional level of cricket. So, the first time I got it was a disaster for me. I went and told the selectors, please drop me and give somebody else a chance,” said Vijay on Taruwar Kohli’s YouTube channel.

Vijay was finally handed a full Test series during Australia’s tour of India in 2012-13, and he turned the opportunity into a breakthrough moment, scoring back-to-back 150s. His consistency soon earned him the role of India’s first-choice opener in the 2014-15 Test series in Australia, where he finished as the team’s second-highest run-scorer, behind only Virat Kohli.

He announced his retirement from all forms of international cricket in 2023. Vijay’s international journey began in 2008, when he replaced Gambhir in India’s XI for the final Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy in Nagpur. Over the course of his career, he represented India in 87 international matches across formats, 61 Tests, 17 ODIs, and 9 T20Is.

Vijay last played for India in 2018 against Australia in Perth. His final first-class and List-A appearances for Tamil Nadu came in late 2019, and his last professional outing was in the Indian Premier League (IPL) in September 2020. Across his 87 international matches, Vijay amassed 4,490 runs at an average of 34.80 and a strike rate of 48.48, registering 12 centuries and 16 half-centuries. He also scored 2,619 runs in 106 IPL matches at an average of 25.93.

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