During the recently concluded Border-Gavaskar Trophy between Australia and India, the youngsters like Mayank Agarwal and Hanuma Vihari have proven their worth in tough situations. Both of them were thrown in the spotlight to face one of the best bowling attacks in the world at the iconic MCG on the Boxing Day and they came out unharmed. While Vihari faced the new ball with utter patience, his partner showed some panache while scoring runs as he scored a half-century on his debut.
Agarwal scored 70-odd runs in his debut Test outing and gave the testimony that he belongs to the international level and then he was also the highest run-scorer in the second innings when India slumped and declared on 106/8. Even in Sydney, the Karnataka opener was at his best playing aggressive strokes and got the team off to a great start despite losing KL Rahul early.
Mayank though reckons that batting first helped India and him at the MCG as it relieve all the butterflies which he had in his stomach very quickly.
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Talking to Hindustan Times, Agarwal said, “I was very excited when I got the cap and I was looking forward to getting on the field and start playing. Wanted to get into the thick of things and get cracking. It helped in many ways that we batted first because I was into the action and did not have enough time to think about other things. Had to be switched on from the word go, and it was nice I believe.”
Recalling the way he was welcomed in the dressing room, Agarwal said that he felt support from everyone before his debut. He credited the team for his exceptional performance at the ‘MCG’.
Mayanak further elaborated, “Everyone was very warm, they welcomed me. Every person in the dressing room ensured that I was comfortable and ready to go and give my best. They backed me, asked me to believe in myself so that I can go and give my best on the field. From Sanjay Bangar sir to Ravi sir, to Virat, everybody.”
Talking about his debut outing at the iconic venue, Mayank acknowledged that he was nervous as it was the Boxing Day and the MCG was almost packed with the crowd cheering. However, he felt at home after playing a few overs.
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Agarwal concluded, “When I played a few balls and middled a few balls and spent a couple of overs there, the nerves started to ease. Also, I had a plan and whenever the mind started wavering around, I reminded myself to stick to the plan. Once the nerves eased, I was playing the ball on its merit and you know, just batting. The journey had started.”
