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4.13 

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Sehwag - Flamboyant juggernaut!
Sep 18, 2016 03:20 AM 5542 Views
(Updated Sep 18, 2016 02:45 PM)

Performance:

Personality:

It is no easy task trying to describe a cricketer like Sehwag and his evolution as a player, but I'll try.:) Although he made his debut sometime in the 1999 - 2000 period, I only noticed him first in an ODI vs Australia in 2001 at Bangalore. He first helped India to a total of 315 with a 58  (62 balls) and later took 3 crucial wickets with his offspin to limit Australia to 250 odd. Most of all, the eventual man of the match impressed with his character. I think all the while, he also sported a bandage on his finger. He again impressed later that year with an impressive 105 on his Test debut vs South Africa on a bouncy track in Bloemfontein. Whereas I was still in the process of deciphering the kind of player he was  (perhaps still figuring it out!;), it was clear that he was a player of genuine quality.


KEY STRENGTHS AND ACHIEVEMENTS AS A PLAYER


GREAT BALANCE & HAND-EYE COORDINATION: One of his key strengths is clearly his great balance as a batsman. Unlike a Dravid or a Sachin, he bothers very less with necessarily achieving the right footwork while playing a shot. But with little footwork, one still needs to achieve the right balance while playing a shot. He does this in a way perfectly suitable for him, albeit unconventional, which is why his ingenious stroke play is seldom affected by his lack of footwork at times. How he does this is a mystery because no coach would teach one to play like this. He obviously has succeeded with his ways, which is why he has achieved so much both in the subcontinent and on overseas tracks.


In the absence of adherence to too much technique, he also relies a lot on instincts and is gifted with great hand-eye coordination to complement his good balance while batting which has treated us to several unbelievable shots over the years.


VARIED, FLEXIBLE SHOT MAKING: When Sachin hits a great shot, people typically appreciate it for the combination of great positioning, timing and technique. When Dravid hits a great shot, it is generally because there would be no better alternative example of a textbook shot. When Sehwag hits a great shot, people applaud it for the power and element of surprise in handling along with the timing to some extent. Whether it is square cutting for a six or a lofted reverse sweep or even the more conventional shots, because his footwork doesn't necessarily give away much, there are many pleasant surprises in store for the viewer when he is on song.


At the beginning of his career, he was described by some as being a  'Sachin copycat' in terms of the on-drive etc, but let's get real here. According to his own revelations, he grew up idolizing Sachin. There is bound to be some influence on him as a batsman. Personally, I feel he is a fairly unique player and most of his shots are his own. The type of surface doesn't affect his style, employing different shots at will.


APPARENTLY FEARLESS: I don't know whether to call it  'fearless' or  'carefree' or maybe both. But in a way, Sehwag kind of paved the way for these new brand of Indian batsmen  (more common now) with aggressive intent. His approach to batting was  sort of unprecedented in Indian cricket in the year 2000 or so. It was not so much the intent but the success which impressed more. I actually have a lot of respect for Sachin as a batsman. But his way of playing varied with situation and form of cricket he was playing. In the 1990s, perhaps Sachin was our most aggressive batsman, although it could be argued he was at the time, also our most complete batsman. Sehwag's style on the other hand, never really changes. He just makes his brand of cricket fit to all conditions and forms of cricket he's playing.


Coming to the  'fearless' aspect, it could be argued that when Sehwag is in a domineering mood, the opposition does not really matter. I would even go as far as to say, that although Sachin was a great player, there were times when he seemed to have no answer to bowlers like McGrath, Pollock and Akram. Sehwag on the other hand, literally dominated some of these bowlers when he was on song. Even the hype sometimes people created about Sachin vs. real quick bowlers like Akthar and Lee, no one dared do that with Sehwag. Because when Sehwag was in the mood, he could make the best of the best look very silly. Even the bowlers have expressed the same sentiment many a time. Sehwag either perished at the very beginning or it was total nightmare for the bowlers.


In my opinion, Sehwag passed an acid test which most of our good batsmen have failed to conquer, over the years. It is no secret after Gavaskar, Sreekanth and Shastri, there was a period, when India lacked not one but 2 consistent Test cricket openers, often leading to our demise. Sachin, Dravid and Laxman had all dabbled with the same eventually letting it pass as an option. Sehwag, originally introduced as a middle order batsman in the team, was also eventually offered the same golden option. Like we know, it was more of a suicide  mission rather than any golden opportunity at the time. But Sehwag not only accepted the mission, but made the position his own, striking terror in the hearts of the bowlers from the word  'go'. Definitely solved the  'opener' problem India had, to a large extent.


DECENT AVERAGE WITH GREAT STRIKE RATE: India has traditionally had a lot of batsmen who focused too much on the technique but very little on match outcome orientation. As a kid, I used to be bored by our batsmen, busy letting the ball pass to the wicketkeeper when there were only few runs to get from even fewer balls, during dying overs of the match  (losing many matches like this). In the early 1990s, at least there were Sachin and Azhar on a somewhat consistent basis. Jadeja etc were not that consistent. During the late 1990s, there was Ganguly, sometimes Laxman and rarely Dravid. But I think with the influx of Sehwag, things drastically changed. We suddenly had some players who wanted to get things moving, even in test cricket. To be honest, there is little point in playing 5 day cricket if at the end, you don't get a result. With Sehwag you had that chance because he played briskly and long when he got going.


Sehwag has a strike rate of around 83 in Tests, 105 in ODIs and 150 in T20s. That's the thing with him. I mean those figures could be regarded respectable in any format of the game. His intent does not really change with the format of the game. It's just different versions of  'faster'. Trying to hit a six first ball of the match, trying to bring up a personal 200 or 300 with a six, these are things which can't be regarded as surprising from him.


Coming to his consistency, this is where his average stands out. He has around 8500 runs apiece both in ODIs and Tests. The Test runs have come at an average of around 50 whereas ODIs were at an average of 35 or so. Whereas the test statistics are mind blowing considering there wouldn't be too many "not outs" to help his average  (him being an opener), the ODI figures could also be regarded as respectable although perhaps one would've expected slightly better in the ODI format. He didn't play many T20Is and I didn't follow the club Twenty20 much, But looking at the stats, there too, it appears fairly decent.


MATCH WINNER AND OTHER HIGHLIGHTS: He essentially fits my description of a match winner. Although I used to be a big fan of Sachin, there were times one felt his good scores were not necessarily the match winning knock. Watching Sehwag though, one could hardly ever argue that when he got going it wasn't a knock which contributed significantly to the chances of winning the match.


His average, unlike some others does not indicate that he would score something good all the time. Being a rhythmic player, he would falter few times and then score really big suddenly eclipsing anything remotely bad he'd done earlier. Unless he was really on song when he would score really well in a row. He wasn't like some of the other high strike rate scorers like Klusener or Afridi who either faded away or were not consistent enough over a period.


While his influx as a Test opener definitely helped, his introduction as an opener in the ODI format also kind of overlapped with the time when Ganguly slowly faded away as a batsman. For a period, one felt that India had the option of 3 opening batsmen.


There was so much made out of Sachin going past Gavaskar by a whisker as far as the highest Indian Test score was concerned. But what has to be seen as a real achievement is Sehwag scoring beyond 300 on a couple of occasions. That too, at an unbelievably brisk rate. He came close on several other occasions too. In my opinion, these were the kind of knocks which had the potential to win Test matches.


He also held the record for the fastest ODI 200 for some time.


He was also known to bowl offspin part time and take crucial wickets at times.


SOME BEST KNOCKS


309 v Pakistan @Multan [2004]: He scored this triple hundred against a potent Pakistan seam and spin attack at a reasonably brisk rate which ultimately allowed India enough time to bowl out Pakistan a second time on the final day of the test match.


293 v Sri Lanka @Mumbai [2009]: This was a really good knock at better than a run a ball against a pretty decent Sri Lanka attack which ultimately allowed India to win on the final day of the test match. I think this was sort of more special because the Mumbai track is not particularly hostile to the bowlers.


105 v South Africa @Bloemfontein [2001]: This was a very good knock on a bouncy track against a very potent South Africa bowling attack on his Test debut, albeit for a losing cause. Very good to watch.


219 v West Indies @Indore [2011]: The fastest ODI 200 of its time, this was a significant knock which laid the foundation in putting the game way out of West Indies's reach from the very beginning.


112 v New Zealand @Auckland [2003]: Considering India were batting second in this one and only won this by 1 run thanks to Sehwag's century in this ODI, where the second highest was a mere 23 by the Indian batting order, this stands out.


Sehwag is known for coming up with certain beauties with his mouth too, whether intentional or unintentional. Definitely not afraid to speak his mind.


"If I play down the order, then there is nobody who can open."(2006)


“If they give us bouncy and seaming tracks they will struggle against our attack because their batsmen are not technically sound.”


"I didn’t want to hit those fours. I kept telling Gautam that I wouldn’t hit fours. But they kept bowling short and I kept square-cutting. And they all were fours.”(2008)


Sehwag on whether he thought a lot about playing each ball correctly: “No, no, no, watch ball, hit ball.”(2009)


“I have asked him many times what the zone is. He tells me that’s when ‘I see nothing except the ball.’ I ask how that is possible. I have never felt something like that. I have asked Rahul Dravid the same thing. He says sometimes when he is in really good form, he sees only the ball – and not the sightscreen, the nonstriker, the umpire or who is bowling, he just sees only the ball. But I have never entered that zone even if I’ve scored triple centuries twice. Maybe I will enter that zone they talk about in future.”


“I have made it very simple for myself. There are 90 overs to be played in a day. If I am able to hit a boundary in 80 of these I can get to a triple hundred by the end of the day’s play and set a match up for my team.”(2010)


My friends and myself had nicknamed him "lovable psycho" at one point. In terms of his hunger as a batsman, a fitting name perhaps.:D I haven't seen Viv Richards play, but maybe he was something similar in his era.


In conclusion, I'd say that it was refreshing to have witnessed someone like Sehwag contribute to Indian cricket during my life in the nonchalant manner he always did. He had his own method to his apparent carefree approach. But as it was not too predictable, his fans were also not in a position to ever put themselves under pressure about it.


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