The curious case of Virender Sehwag
Viru is indeed a special case of a player who has and will always follow three basic laws of cricket–simplicity, straight-forwardness and definitely smart. When he made his debut scoring a sensational century against the Proteas in 2001 in the Bloemfontein Test, he made headlines and has since then stayed the same. As a person, Viru can be connected by millions across the country who want to take up this game.
However, unlike many who have excelled on the basis of their technique and skill, Viru came up on the legends’ ladder based on his gift of attacking the opposition through sheer grit and attacking attitude.
In one of his interviews, former Indian skipper Anil Kumble had once said, “The biggest difference between me and Sachin Tendulkar has been that–he has always tried to prove his critics right that he was a prodigy while I was trying to prove the detractors wrong who often questioned my ability to spin the ball.â€
The aforementioned statement holds true for Viru too.
His ‘I care a damn attitude’ has helped him not just to keep his critics at bay, but his supreme touch with the willow has won many fans the world over.
So what makes Viru different in a side that boasts of superstars in the form of Tendulkar, Dhoni, VVS and Dravid? Well, the difference lies in his fearlessness in any situation that would draw caution from the aforementioned names too. This fearlessness combined with the attacking attitude not only turns the tide in India’s favour but immediately puts tremendous pressure on the opposition.
During one of my chats with Viru, the right-hander said he often relived pressure off himself by singing songs during batting. “I often hum tunes from Kishore da. Like a normal human, I do feel pressure in the middle but tend to stay cool,†said Viru.
Another important feature of Sehwag’s stay at the crease is his supreme gift of scoring quickly for longer durations of time, a trait that separates him from the rest of his breed. “Over the last few years, I have tend to not curb my style of play but at the same time, tend to cut down on the risk element which helps me bat freely,†he says. His way of answering queries from the media to his batting or his cricket in general has always modeled on being simple, a quality that many can learn from.
In a side which has Sachin in the ranks, to have created his own niche speaks volumes about Viru’s temperament, technique (or the lack of it!) and last but not the least–tenacity to take his opposition’s wings by the scruff of the neck.
