Fit and hungry Vijay ready for Mumbai battle

Just when Tamil Nadu's tailenders were getting a feel of the bat towards the end of their training session at the the Bandra Kurla Complex in Mumbai's business hub, M Vijay padded up to take guard for the second time in an hour.

Vijay, seeking to return to match fitness after missing two of India's three Tests in Sri Lanka due to a hamstring injury, defended balls from pacers for a while. Vijay's defence, which has been the hallmark of his game during his resurgence as a Test opener over the last two years, was tight as ever.

Tamil Nadu may be taking on Mumbai in one of the more high-profile clashes of the 2015-16 Ranji Trophy season, but more than the rivalry between the sides, the spotlight over the next four days will be on Vijay, with the Test series against South Africa starting in three weeks.

Vijay may have emerged as the leaver in Tests over the last couple of years, but he started his prolonged training stint in an unusual manner. He first asked spinners and seamers to bowl onto his pads for a good 20 minutes. Then, the line changed to outside off stump. But Vijay hardly had any difficulties in judging it. He returned towards the end of the session to finish off with a string of defensive strokes.

It was Vijay's first serious net session since scoring 82 in Kumar Sangakkara's farewell Test. His stint at the crease on Tuesday, hours after joining his team-mates in Mumbai, was all about expressing himself freely.

"I am pretty excited to play this game because it has been a long gap," Vijay said. "After the Sri Lanka tour, I did not get any game at all. I am really working hard on my fitness. I am looking forward for a positive result if I play all four days of this match and get some confidence going."

It will be music to the ears of his Tamil Nadu team-mates, as well as the national selectors if Vijay gets into his groove straightaway. It will not be that way for the hosts, though.

After earning a bonus point against Punjab at the Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai will be striving for consistency. They will be banking on the new-ball duo of Dhawal Kulkarni and Shardul Thakur to pull the brakes on Vijay early on.

Six years ago, Vijay scored a breezy 154 against the same opponents. If he can produce a knock of similar quality over the next four days, it would be the most opportune manner for him to prove his fitness.