'It's a dream to bat with Sachin'

India were in some sort of trouble at 38 for two, in reply to Australia’s 478 all out, when Tendulkar linked up with the Tamil Nadu batsman and the two took India to 128 while keeping their wickets intact. “He is my childhood hero and batting with him is just unbelievable. I am enjoying that moment. Both Sachin and (Virender) Sehwag are legends. It’s a great honour for me to play with them. I have learnt a lot of things from them.” added Vijay, who remained unbeaten on a well-composed 42.

With India still 350 runs in arrears, Vijay isn’t unaware that the hosts have a lot of catching up to do. “There’s still a lot of work to do. The wicket is deteriorating and the ball is coming on slower than expected. It is the second day and the wicket is sort of two-paced. We have to really work out our plans and play well. We are batting well and we want to concentrate on our basics. That’s all we are thinking right now,” he noted. Asked about his approach to the game as he always steps in as a replacement, Vijay said: “I try to make it simple. Try to contribute to the team in whichever way possible.”

The right-hander admitted that India conceded a lot of boundaries in the first session. “The wicket was really good in the morning and there was nothing happening out there.  Initially, we gave a lot of boundaries but we tried hard to get things under our control and we hit back in the second session,” he offered.