Playing for the country is the first priority, says Murali vijay

Former Indian international Rahul Dravid decided to extend his contract for two more years with the India A and Under-19 teams. The engagement with the national teams will keep him away from his coaching duties in the IPL. The legendary batsman’s decision to serve the nation first is definitely praiseworthy.

In the present cricketing scenario, we have seen many cricketers giving up on their national duties to play in lucrative Twenty20 leagues. Even in the IPL, we saw examples where cricketers participated in the tournament with injury concerns and then made themselves unavailable for international matches succumbing to the injury.

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However,  Indian opener Murali Vijay thinks otherwise. The batsman successfully completed the Test series against Australia with an injured wrist and then opted to skip the IPL’s iconic 10^th edition in order to undergo surgery.

Speaking to The Hindu, Vijay said “Money is important but it is not everything. You got to be honest with yourself and put your hand up for the country in tough times.” He added, “Nothing gives me greater satisfaction than representing India, the pride I get in playing for the country in the whites is above everything else. That motivated me to put my pain aside and play the series against Australia.”

When asked about how tough was it a decision to opt for a surgery knowing that it would cost him the cash-rich tournament, Vijay added “Not really. I was pretty clear of the road ahead of me for the next couple of months following the surgery. I missed the IPL to play the coming Test series in Sri Lanka.”

Vijay highlighted the fact that playing Test cricket satisfies him the most. “Doing the job in the longer format for the country gives me the ultimate kick, it is the most difficult format, particularly when you play abroad in tough conditions.” said the opener.

Spinner Ravichandran Ashwin also served the nation with sports hernia in the series against Australia and then withdrew himself from the IPL. These cricketers are a perfect example of loyalty and are the heroes of the nation.