K Vignesh ditches Australia tour to participate in the TNPL

Tamil Nadu pacer K Vignesh was scheduled to travel to Australia on July 29^th accompanied by Madhya Pradesh seamer Avesh Khan as part of an exchange programme between MRF Pace Foundation and Cricket Australia. The tour would see the Kovai Kings bowler miss out on the Tamil Nadu Premier League (TNPL) for a lengthy stretch of time. However, the above-mentioned scenario was according to a two-week old situation. The bowler will now stay back in India and will be available for the whole TNPL.

Vignesh revealed that he took the decision of staying back in India due to the absence of other stars in the team in the name of M Vijay and Vijay Shankar for a major part of the tournament. Vignesh was outstanding for the team in the first edition where he took 11 wickets. Murali Vijay will miss the tournament as he is still recovering from his wrist injury, Vijay Shankar will travel to South Africa as a part of the India ‘A’ squad.

“I will play the entire TNPL. I am not going to Australia because Vijay and Vijay Shankar are not available for Kovai. If I also would have not been available, it would have been a huge setback for Kovai. Hence, it was decided that I should stay back. The Kovai owner spoke over the phone to me and said he doesn’t want me to be missing the TNPL. That was a matter of pride,” Vignesh told ToI on Saturday.

A chance to engage himself with Australian Coaches National Cricket Centre in Brisbane would have done him a lot of good in bolstering his skills as a pace bowler. But the 22-year-old has no regrets about missing out on the same.

I’ve no complaints. I’m playing in a big tournament like the TNPL. If I do well and get my rewards, I could have an opportunity of playing in the IPL soon. As far as the Australia stint is concerned, I’m not sure whether I will be going after the TNPL or whether I will have to wait till next year,” he said.

On participating in the TNPL:

The bowler who was forced to the sidelines since February is all set to deliver in the TNPL and is oozing with confidence.

“I’m really looking forward to the TNPL as I will be playing in a big tournament after a long time. I’m fully fit and raring to go. The TNPL is going to be bigger and better this year. So, the expectations and amount of pressure is going to be high. I’m hopeful of putting up a big performance. As a team, too, we are trying our best and will look to start really well in our first game,” he added.