Press Trust of India
Colombo, August 4: Skipper Virat Kohli’s strategy to field five bowlers would mean that six specialist batsmen can hardly afford to relax, but opener Murali Vijay said there won’t be any extra pressure on them when they meet Sri Lanka in the upcoming Test series.
The Tamil Nadu batsman is coming into the series on the back of a hundred he scored against Bangladesh in the one-off Test and the opener is eager to continue with the rich vein of form.
“It’s (competition for batting slots) going to be good for the team and we are going to be in a much comfortable position on most times. So it will be a good challenge for all the players,” Vijay told reporters.
Opener Shikhar Dhawan also made a blazing 173 in Bangladesh and with Lokesh Rahul also in line for a spot in the playing XI, the competition is intense. Vijay though was not too worried.
With two fairly young sides up against one another the right-hander hoped the series will be worth it’s weight. “There are a lot of youngsters, like Angelo Mathews is doing well, there is (Lahiru) Thiramanne, so there is a lot of talent in the team and it is going to be a tough series for us,” he said. “But definitely with an aggressive captain, we will definitely look to win the series where I would like to contribute.”
Sri Lanka will be without two their veterans – Mahela Jayawardena (already retired) and Kumar Sangakkara, after the retirement of the latter post the second Test and Vijay felt that India will have the upper hand on that count.
“Mahela and Sangakkkara not being there will open up a big hole in their batting line-up. But still they are a talented side and we will be looking forward to a challenging series,” Vijay stated.
Indian Test cricket is going through a transformation period with Kohli at the helm and Vijay has high hopes from the young team. “We are a close knit unit now and it has been two seasons that we are playing abroad. This is the first time that we will play in the sub-continent so it’s going to be exciting times,” he signed off.
