Six years ago, when Vineet Saxena returned to Rajasthan after playing for Railways for a season, he felt unwanted and decided to give up the game. But not one to give in without a fight, Saxena wanted to give it one last shot to prove a point to his detractors.
The following season, Saxena did a lot more and on Friday was the toast of the team, as he became the first batsman in 13 years to score a double century in the Ranji final against Tamil Nadu.
"What makes it special is that this is my first double century and to score it in a Ranji final is something unimaginable," Saxena told HT.
But even the 31-year-old admitted that the opportunity would not have come had he given in to disappointment and quit the game.
"After I returned to Rajasthan for the 2006-07 season, I could feel the tension in the dressing room. I got just two games and was dropped. I got disillusioned and even took up a course in financial management," said Saxena, who played five Ranji games and one Irani Cup match for Railways in the 2005-06.
"I went back to Udaipur and spent six months all alone. The period helped me introspect and also made me mentally stronger, something that is helping me now," he said.
{{/usCountry}}"I went back to Udaipur and spent six months all alone. The period helped me introspect and also made me mentally stronger, something that is helping me now," he said.
{{/usCountry}}Saxena slowly cemented his place in the team and played an important role in Rajasthan's historic Ranji triumph last year, where he scored two centuries and a couple of half centuries at an average of 51.45.
Even this year, Rajasthan are indebted to him for the 127-run knock against Saurashtra on a green track that kept them alive in the tournament and the gutsy 58 in the second innings of the semifinal against Haryana.