Harare:
It has been three years since he last played a Test match but Indian leg-spinner Amit Mishra is hopeful that his fine show in the ongoing ODI series against Zimbabwe would once again open the doors for him in the five-day format.
Mishra, with nine wickets at 15.11 runs apiece in three matches, has set an Indian record in a bilateral series in Zimbabwe in ODIs. Only once in his career, he has taken 10 or more wickets in a series -- 11 at an average of 18.09 in five matches in West Indies in 2011.
And riding on the current performance, the 30-year-old, who was adjudged man of the match in Sunday’s third ODI which India won to clinch the series, is now hoping to get a Test call-up.
"I`m not in the Test side. I`ll try and do my job in the next two matches, and then it`s up to the selectors. I`ve been waiting a long time for this and I`m doing my best and it`s working for me now," said Mishra, who is on his first ODI assignment in two years.
Since his debut in 2008, Mishra has played 13 Tests, taking 43 wickets at an average of 43.30. Mishra detailed the changes he has brought to his bowling and how the hard work was paying dividends now.
"I`ve done lots of hard work on my googlies and variations and it`s paying off," he said.
"When I came here I was just thinking about the conditions and how to bowl on these kinds of tracks. I`ve spoken a lot with TP (Trevor Penney) and Duncan (Fletcher) who have given me a few tips, which I`ve been working hard on," he added.
Mishra admitted that competition is tough in the Indian team but insisted that it is healthy.
"All the players have done so well in domestic cricket, so they came here with the confidence," he said.
"There`s a lot of healthy competition going on -- everyone wants to do well for India, so it`s working for the Indian team."
