ENG v IND 2018: Murali Vijay says team effort needed to defeat England in their own backyard

Vijay was one of the highest run getters for India in Tests against England when India last toured back in 2014.

Murali Vijay | GETTY

Upcoming India vs England Test series is going to be the real test of the no.1 ranked Indian side. After a decent performance in the limited overs series, India will play England in whites in the 5-Test series starting from August 1 in Birmingham. 

Ahead of the crucial series, Indian opener Murali Vijay talked about the tough challenge. However, he is ready with a good mindset and hopes the team could defeat England at their home this time.

"Every condition presents its own challenges and as a cricketer, you have got to be ready to accept it and just put your best foot forward. It's just a matter of time before we get started as a Test team and hopefully, we can win this time. I'm in a good mindset at the moment and hope to go there and get my basics and preparation right and from there we have to judge how the conditions are. It will be crucial for us to stay together throughout," he told IndiaTV.

Vijay has a good record in England. He was one of the top performers for India when India toured England last time in 2014.

The Tamil Nadu batsman spoke about the collective effort to win the series. He added the captain Virat Kohli's way of lifting the team is helping men in blue.

"For sure, it is an opportunity for us to go and do well like the seniors before us. They all went there with the same mindset like ours and whether it is winning in England, Australia or New Zealand, it's not going to change. It's a collective effort and hopefully, we can get the momentum going and win the series.

"The way Virat is handling the team and the members are raising their game as well, so it's a great atmosphere overall. It's just about doing our bit as a team, be more professional and finish the game on a high," Vijay said.

Injuries have been a major hurdle in the 34-year-old's career. He wants to better his fitness. "Definitely, I've been working on my fitness. The net sessions have started and I'm pretty excited to go to England and see how it works for me," he said.

Vijay looked confident when he said the Indian skipper Virat is going to get lots of runs. "He just batted in a phenomenal manner (in the ODIs) and I would like to wish him luck for the series. The way he is batting I think he will score more runs in this series."

The Indian opener is the one who always believes in enjoying the game. In India's last Test match against Afghanistan, he and KL Rahul were seen trying out the dab-pose during the game. Vijay said he just tried to copy his son.

"I'm just trying to copy my son as he is into dabbing and stuff. Rahul and I decided that if we get a hundred run partnership, we would do that and so we did it against Afghanistan. Personally, we all like to have fun, everyone likes to dance and do a jig. I saw some of them do it in England so it's going to be fun. The team is gelling together over a couple of years which is really nice, hopefully, we can keep that camaraderie going and it'll be awesome in this series," he said.

On his equation with KL Rahul, Vijay further added: "He is 100% talented and using the best of his opportunities and that is what is more important and I really wish him luck and hopefully the team can keep the momentum going."

 
 

By Sihyeu Singh - 24 Jul, 2018

    Share Via