by Shreyas Subash Bhide
Sehwag has been an outstanding match winner for India of late. The only Indian to reach the three hundred mark(he has infact done that twice). He has three double centuries to his credit and experts feel he is the only player of contemporary times who can equal or surpass Brian Lara’s record of highest individual score(400 not out) or even score a double century in ODI’s. here’s a lowdown of the Najafgarh dasher’s five best innings :-
1. 319 vs South Africa (29th March 2008 - 2nd April 2008))
Venue: Chennai
On a patta pitch , the Proteas decided to bat first and went on to score a massive 540. At the end of day one, when South Africa finished with 304/4 on board, Sehwag said in the press conference that if he gets going he too can go on to bat for 2 days on this flat pitch. He proved it right as India finished the day with 82 on board without losing any wicket. If those 21 overs were anything to go by then Sehwag and India looked set for a big one. Cover drives and Square cuts were flowing with precision from Sehwag’s blade, even as India went on to score 309 at the end of the third day. It was the fastest triple century in the history of tests. Sehwag got out soon after play resumed on day four, but India were in the driver’s seat. Ably supported by Dravid and Jaffer, Sehwag had become only the third batsman, after Don Bradman and Brian Lara, to surpass the magic figure of 300 twice in Tests. By the time India were bowled out on tea on day 4, the match looked headed towards a draw and so it did. But the match will be more remembered for Sehwag’s histronics, as even the South Africans admitted at the end of the test that they were done in by a SPECIAL KNOCK from a SPECIAL PLAYER. Sehwag of course was the man of the match.
2. 309 vs Pakistan (28th March 2004 - 1st April 2004)
Venue: Multan
Exactly four year before that swash buckling knock against the Smith’s men, Sehwag had plundered Inzamam ul Haq’s men all over the ground to score the first triple century of his career as well as become the first Indian to do so. What made it special was that he achieved his scores of 200 and 300 with a six. While this showed his confidence in his style and talent, it also brought to fore the disdain with which he was treating the Pakistani bowlers for 5 sessions. India posted a massive total of 675 and had Pakistan on the mat as they were bowled out for 407, courtesy Irfan Pathan’s exploits with the swinging bowl. Still lagging 268 runs behind the Indian total, the hosts were asked to follow on. In their second innings Pakistan managed only 216 and India won the match with 52 runs and an innings to spare on the fourth day itself. This match winning knock again meant that Sehwag was declared the Man of the Match.
3. 151 vs Australia (24th January 2008 - 28th January 2008)
Venue: Adelaide
Sehwag, who was under the scanner for a string of poor performance was picked for the tour down under on Kumble’s insistence. Though he did not play the first two test matches at Melbourne and Sydney(which India lost), he was a part of the victorious group that came trumps against the mighty Aussies at the WACA, Perth. In the fourth test at Adelaide Sehwag played a gem of a knock of 151, to help India save the test and come back into reckoning. Sehwag had scored 63 in the first innings, as India posted 526 on board. Australia replied back with an equally competitive 563 and India were left in tatters as Pathan, Dravid, Tendulkar, Ganguly and Laxman had returned to pavilion with scores of 0, 11, 13, 18 and 12 respectively. At 186 /4 India looked set to finish for a low total and Australia would have chased it down. But Sehwag stood like a rock scoring 151 off 236 deliveries. It was an uncharacteristic Sehwag innings, as he wasn’t looking to hit or score even though he depended on his hand-eye co-ordination. A strike rate of 63 was very unlike Sehwag, but ably supported by Dhoni (20 of 44) and Kumble (7 of 52), Sehwag had rescued India to safety. By the time Sehwag got out, just after tea, India were well on their way to successfully draw the test and salvage their pride.
4. 201* vs Sri Lanka (31st July 2008 - 3rd August 2008)
Venue: Galle
Even as a certain Ajantha Mendis was creating havoc for the famed Indian batting lineup, Sehwag and Ganguly were the only ones who looked comfortabe against him. In an innings where Mendis claimed his career best in Tests (6/117), Sehwag emerged and stood out like a phoenix. He started as an opener and remained unbeaten till the end, even as India were bundled up for 329 in their first innings. Sehwag played a patient innings of 201, scoring runs on the ball’s merits. He looked to tick the scoreboard, nudge singles into the gaps and defend quality deliveries, as he saw from the other end, the Indian middle order being blown away by the Mendis cyclone. Apart from Sehwag, Jaffer and Laxman were the only ones who could reach double figures. Out of the total 329 Indian runs, Sehwag scored 201 was testimony to the fact that he had his tecnique, bat and his head in the right place. Later on he scored 50 in the second innings to help India pull of an improbable victory.
5. 254 vs Pakistan (13 January 2006 - 17 January 2006)
Venue: Lahore
In a match that couldn’t see even the first innings being completed, Sehwag towered above one and all. He smashed 254(from 247 balls) at an amazing strike rate of just over 102. His innings easily overshadowed the fact that four Pakistan batsem had hit centuries in a single innings - Younis Khan (199), Md.Yousuf (173), Shahid Afridi (103) and Kamran Akmal (102). A massive score of 679 indicated that India would find it difficult to save the match, but Sehwag and his opening partner Rahul Dravid (128) stood like a rock and stitched together a first wicket partnership of 410, three short of breaking the 50-year-old record for the highest first-wicket partnership in all Tests, by their old compatriots Vinoo Mankad and Pankaj Roy against New Zealand at Madras. Sehwag’s love of Pakistan’s bowling was already well-known - his previous six Tests against them had featured scores of 309, 173 and 201 - and this was his second double in succession. There were a staggering 47 fours and a six, the third-highest total in a Test innings. The flatness of the pitch though suggested that, even if the match had been timeless, it might have been problematic bowling out a side once - let alone twice. The fickleness of the weather thankfully curtailed such punishment, allowing barely 220 overs’ play. Only 15 overs were possible on the third day, and just 14 balls on the fifth.
