It was in the fourth week of May 2000 that the Indian team for the Asia Cup in Dhaka was selected. He got the nod ahead of Vinod Kambli who had scored runs in the tonnes in the Deodhar Trophy. Badani did impress the Chairman of selectors Chandu Borde and the Indian team coach Kapil Dev, who said, "Badani is the most outstanding young player in the camp."

Badani took the chances that came to him with both his hands. In the span of a year he represented India in 13 One-Day internationals and has scored 405 runs at a fantastic average of 40.50. In just the fourth ODI of his career, playing at Cuttack against Zimbabwe he played a match winning knock of 58 not out and became the Man of the Match, cementing his place in the ODI squad amongst the likes of Sachin Tendulkar and Rahul Dravid in the middle order.

Badani scored a scintillating 100 in just 97 balls against the visiting Australian side at Pune and distanced himself away from all the competition for the number five slot in One-Day Internationals. His brilliance in the field has also not gone unnoticed. Credit should go to Badani for making most of the opportunity, given the fact that the competition for the place in the ODI team comes from a none-too- less talented player Yuvraj Singh.

The left-handed batsman from Tamil Nadu will be the first person to admit that he doesn't see much of an opportunity coming his way when it comes to breaking into the Indian Test team. With four world-class batsmen occupying the Indian middle order, Badani must have been thinking about playing in ODIs alone.

Badani has always remained positive about his chances. He said, "I think I've done well in the one-dayers so far. When I did consistently well in the domestics I was picked to play the one-dayers. Similarly I'm sure I'll be picked to play Test cricket for India." It did not come as a surprise when the selectors named him in the Test squad for the Zimbabwe series. Now that he is in the reserves of the side, all he can do is to hope for an opportunity to come his way and do more than his best.

For his maiden tour with the Indian senior team he has his mind focused on the job. He says, ""However much you've played against pace and swing bowling here it's bound to be different in a place like Zimbabwe. I admit that. But it's nothing a good batsman can't adapt to," says Badani confidently. "If your mind is not ready and you're not concentrating hard enough, then you're bound to struggle. Mentally you have to be ready to implement some technical changes. You have to learn to let the ball go more and more often. You can't play through the line of the ball as easily as you do here in the subcontinent."

In the span of one year, Indian cricket is definitely richer with the presence of Badani in the Indian Test squad. It has been a phenomenal year of success for the soft-spoken Hemang Badani who could inspire a whole new generation of young batsmen in India.

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