From Nidahas trophy to Nagpur: The three phases of Vijay Shankar's journey
One year in international cricket can be a very short or a very long time, completely depending on which cricketer you’re talking to. Ask Vijay Shankar this question now, and he’d surely respond that it’s quite a lifetime now.
18th March 2018 is a day which Shankar would probably wish to delete from his memories. In the steamy cauldron of the Premadasa Stadium in Colombo which was hosting the finals of the Nidahas Trophy, India was chasing a tricky 167 run target set by Bangladesh.
Shankar, who had a decent tournament with the ball until the final, walked out to bat with the score reading 98/4 in the 14th over, for the very first time in international cricket. This type of situation can overwhelm many big cricketers, let alone a newcomer, and safe to say, Shankar didn’t have the best of times in the middle.
Confronted with the cutter specialist Mustafizur Rahman in the 18th over of the game with India requiring 35 from the last 3 overs, Shankar collapsed. He couldn’t pick the cutters being bowled by 'The Fizz' and let go a wicket maiden over, as his partner Manish Pandey perished on the last delivery of the over.
Despite the heroics of his state-mate and friend Dinesh Karthik, who took India home with a barnstorming 29* from only 8 deliveries, it was Shankar who was subjected to abuse from all quarters, especially on social media. His 17 (19) in the final, would remain his kryptonite if one was to believe.
#1 Shining at domestic games after the horror at Nidahas:
Cue to 2019 and to New Zealand, where the India A team was on tour and had a 3-match unofficial Test and ODI series scheduled against a strong New Zealand A team. It was around that time that the coach Rahul Dravid and his staff told Vijay Shankar that he’s their side's designated finisher and was to bat at either the number 5 or number 6 slot. This confidence being instilled in him reflected in his showing in the ODI series, where Shankar had match-winning contributions in all the games.