Vijay’s omission from the last two matches had become a big talking point. All along, Tamil Nadu’s coaching staff and selectors had said that he was rested due to an injury and his workload was being managed because of the long season ahead. But throughout those two matches, Vijay fielded as a substitute and the player himself claimed that he was fully fit. The term ‘rested’ clearly felt like he was dropped.

It wasn’t as if Vijay had been struggling for runs. In the last two seasons, he averaged 53.66 (7 matches) and 45.70 (9 matches) and scored 4 centuries and five fifties. These are good numbers for a batsman coming out at No 5.

Yet, when the new Ranji season began, he was warming the bench. Even for this fixture against Chhattisgarh, despite Baba Indrajith, B Sai Sudharsan, R Sai Kishore and Washington Sundar unavailable, Vijay wasn’t certain of a place in the XI. After making 32 in the first innings, he needed a big knock as much as Tamil Nadu, who were fighting to avoid a home defeat. And Vijay responded to the occasion, staying unbeaten on 106.

“It’s not about being relieved. It’s about how much I have worked hard for this,” Vijay said of the animated celebration. “It was not easy to sit out for two games especially when you know you are playing well, bowling well and your body is good.”

When Vijay walked in at the fall of the second wicket at 90 on Day 4, Tamil Nadu were still 151 runs behind Chhattisgarh, whose spinners were settling into a good rhythm. As the first innings showed, playing defensively on this pitch was always fraught with risk. The hosts needed someone to play with positive intent.

Crucial contribution

N Jagadeesan, for a change, was not in his usual rhythm. But from the moment Vijay walked in, he took charge of the situation. Apart from finding boundaries – there were nine in total, the 4 sixes against the spinners meant the Chhattisgarh attack couldn’t exert any pressure. Though Jagadeesan departed before lunch, Vijay – in the company of Boopathi Vaishnav Kumar and Pradosh Ranjan Paul – ensured Tamil Nadu gave only three points to Chhattisgarh.

While it felt like normalcy returned to the Tamil Nadu dressing room, for Vijay it was another instance of wanting to prove a point. “It has become normal (proving a point) for me and I’m used to it now. But again, I feel proud because it came when the team needed it. If we had lost, Chhattisgarh would have come into the picture for qualification. When you play this sort of innings, where you help the team, it is a special feeling and it is one of the best feelings one can have. I’m used to building big partnerships in the middle order so that was the plan with Jagadeesan, Boopathi and Pradosh,” Vijay added.

Having suffered his own share of injuries between 2019 and 2021, the last two seasons have seen Vijay put in a lot of effort. To be fully fit for the domestic season, he even declined a couple of offers from county teams. As he missed the first two matches, there were once again murmurs of him not being fully fit.

“I’ve been playing back-to-back matches for a year and a half without even missing a single league game (Chennai). And it is only before the season that I took a break. It has been more than 100 days without a game, which isn’t easy. This hundred is for my son,” Vijay added.

Courtesy the draw, Tamil Nadu are now third on the Group D table with Chandigarh and Railways above them. After the Diwali break, the next round of Ranji fixtures begins on November 6 with Tamil Nadu heading to Guwahati to face Assam.

Brief scores: Chhattisgarh 500 drew with Tamil Nadu 259 & 264/4 (Vijay Shankar 106 not out, N Jagadeesan 60). Points Chhattisgarh 3, Tamil Nadu 1