Workhorse Vinay set for a century

BENGALURU: When Ranganath Vinay Kumar was handed the coveted Karnataka Ranji Trophy cap on November 7, 14 summers ago, he was a small-town boy with king-sized dreams. Although his team lost in his debut match - against Bengal in Kolkata - Vinay claimed a match haul of five wickets and his career took wings.
Today, when the 34-year-old leads the state team out against Vidarbha in the Ranji Trophy opener, it will mark the bowling allrounder's 100th Ranji Trophy appearance. He will be the fourth from Karnataka after Sunil Joshi (117), Syed Kirmani (105) and Brijesh Patel (104) to achieve the milestone.
Vinay's long and rich firstclass cricket career has its foundations in a hard-work ethic, immense self-belief and a never-say-die attitude.
The pacer, who has led Karnataka to two Ranji Trophy titles apart from a host of other domestic riches, described the journey from a teenager from Davanagere looking to make it big to leading the Karnataka team, as an amazing one.
"I'm truly blessed to be what I am today," said the bowler who has relied more on craft than pace. "I came to Bengaluru from Davanagere and began playing in the fifth division league. I then graduated to the first division and that opened up opportunities."
Vinay, who made his debut under former Karnataka coach J Arun Kumar (JAK), credited his teammates for making him feel at home in the big city and in the team. "When I first arrived in Bengaluru, I felt I was from a small town. I was very lucky to play under JAK in a team coached by K Jeshwanth.
Dodda Ganesh and NC Aiyappa, who were bowling partners. Thilak (Naidu), Sujith (Somasunder), (KS) Ponnappa and all the other seniors took care of me. Slowly, I forgot I was a small-town boy."
Vinay also credited the Indian Premier League and the lessons he learnt from instant cricket for his success. "When IPL was launched (in 2008), I adapted to the changes and worked on my fitness. Thanks to the IPL, I got to share the dressing room with international cricketers and that gave me the confidence that I too could make it big."
Heading into his 15th season, age hasn't slowed him down and he continues to be Karnataka's mainstay. "I'm 34 but I feel like I'm 23-24," he said.