Scoring 200 has been very special: Vineet Saxena

Vineet Saxena’s double century knock set the pace for Rajasthan’s title case in the Ranji Trophy final against Tamil Nadu. For the hosts, it was all but over when Saxena lifted his bat for the second time in the innings only to acknowledge his knock when he crossed the 200-mark. On the penultimate day of the final, Tamil Nadu were bowled out and Rajasthan took a solid lead. Though the match would end only later today, it is certain that Rajasthan will take home the title on the virtue of first innings lead.

Speaking to Sportskeeda.com, the man of the moment who made Rajasthan’s title defence an easy affair, Vineet Saxena talks about the double century knock and also about how his age should not be a deciding factor for him to represent the national side in the future. Excerpts:

Firstly, tell us about the planning that went behind when you and Akash Chopra came out to bat…

Initially when we went into bat we wanted to see the new ball off. In last year’s final against Baroda, Akash bhai lost his wicket due to a false shot. His was the first wicket. We didn’t want to let that happen this time. We told ourselves that we won’t throw our wicket.

We told eachother this all through the first day. Ranji final is a five day game, we didn’t want to score fast and do something stupid. We had about 250-270 runs in mind for the first wicket. Second day, we couldn’t score that many runs. It was slower than the first day. We knew trying to score faster wouldn’t help.

An extra day in the final meant a lot of time. We wanted to occupy the crease for as long as we could and wait for the lose balls. The wicket was slow and even if we wanted to aacelarate, it would not have been easy.

Day three, we wanted to get three runs per over, score 600 and declare. Thankfully, things worked in our way and we were able to stick to our plan.

Rajasthan overcame Tamil Nadu in the semifinals last year. You think, playing them in the final this year gave you an edge over them?

In Ranji final, the best two teams in the tournament play so the pressure is on both teams. Off course they have home advantage but there is added pressure on both of us. Since it was their home ground, they had the wicket which suits them. The wicket is spin friendly and we had three medium pacers as oppose to their spin attack. They obviously had a better chance than us.

Tell us about your 200. How special is this knock?

Honestly, I am very happy to get the century. I got my century on the first day of the match and I was fresher and I could get runs freely. But when I got my double ton, I was mentally drained than physically. At that moment when I got the runs, I couldn’t really enjoy the moment. It was only after I came back to the dressing room and relaxed for a bit that it sunk in. I really rejoiced getting that knock. This knock will certainly remain special for me.

How do you rate your performance this season?

This season has been the best in my career so far. I have got close to 900 runs and I think I am placed second. Overall it’s been really good. I was able to score for my team when we needed it the most. When a team is a scoring 600 runs the contribution is made by everyone. But what’s been more satisfying for me is that, I managed to score in crunch situations.

Did you do anything different in your preparations prior to the start of the season?

Actually, I didn’t do anything in particular. Probably in the mid season I made some adjustment in my bat lift. I went to Rishsikesh bhai (Kanitkar) for help and he suggested something to me. I implimented that in our game against Saurastra and it worked. I ended up getting a century.

Things have certainly gone well for you this season. What are your aspirations now? Are looking forward to IPL contract?

I have no offers as yet. I really hope people take notice of my achievement. I know Ranji is totally different from IPL. But I am hoping somebody picks me up. There are a few India ‘A’ tours coming up. I hope I get a chance in that. That would really be a stepping stone for me to make it to the Indian team.

Tell us a little bit about your background. When did you start playing cricket?

When I was young I used to play a lot of street cricket. I loved playing. I started playing nets when I was about 11-12 years old. I practcied at Sanjay Jagdale’s Academy in Indore. Later when my dad got transferred to Udaipur I played under Dinesh who is my current coach now.

But back then I never thought I could make a career out of cricket. It was only when I got a chance to play for India Under-19 and debuted the same year in Ranji that I realised I wanted to make a career out of cricket. I got placement in Western Railways and was posted in Mumbai for six years. I have been playing first class cricket for the past 12 years. I have done in the past and have had a couple of good seasons too but maybe they weren’t as good to get noticed. But this innings has really helped me gain a lot of confidence.

At 31, you still aspire to play for India. Don’t you think age is going to be a factor?

Vineet: Look, Michael Hussey debuted for Australia when he was 31. India too has quite a few senior players. I don’t think age is any negative factor. I have matured as a cricketer. I think the experience has helped me. I have been doing well consistently. I am 31 and its not that I am old. I can do what a 21 year old can do.