Getting the cap from MS Dhoni was amazing: Faiz Fazal

Faiz Fazal, who made the debut for India at the age of 30 against Zimbabwe in the last match, described the moment as “a dream come true.” The left-handed opening batsman also said that he kept himself motivated for an India cap with his passion for cricket, even when it seemed not possible.

“I was really nervous, initially, but then the nerves came down and by God’s grace I batted well. It was an amazing moment. Getting the cap from captain M.S. Dhoni, he is such an amazing human being and such an amazing captain. I was lucky to get the cap from him.

“It is a dream come true. Getting a half-century for India in the first game. But, this is the just the first step, hopefully, they will come more and more in the future,” Fazal told bcci.tv. “I was numb, to be honest. I was really happy that I got the cap. But, that is the life of a sportsman. You just need to work hard and hard and when you get the reverse, you have to accept it. You have to go there and perform,” the 30-year-old added.

Speaking about what kept him motivated to play cricket even when an India cap looked impossible, Fazal said, “The game itself is a motivation for me. I mean, you don’t need anybody to motivate yourself. I love the game and it’s my hobby. The passion, and the motivation everything is just the game itself. I always wanted to play for the country, it was my aim. When this aim was lost, then there is nothing to play for. I don’t how many things are these, but the game itself is a big motivation.”

Fazal and K.L. Rahul formed an unbeaten 126-run partnership for the opening wicket, and helped India clean sweep the series with a 10-wicket victory.

Asked about the innings, Fazal said the wicket was a bit bowling-friendly, and that they took their time before scoring the runs. “Me and Rahul were communicating really well. I mean, that was not a big total. But, as you have seen the wickets here are not that great over here, little bowling friendly. So it was important to stay there and keep batting. That’s what we did and really happy that we won by 10 wickets,” said the Vidarbha batsman.