(Image courtesy: New Indian Express)There’s one thing common to Viru and his bat. Neither manages to remain silent. L Suresh takes a look at the man who zags when the world around him zigs…
He was considered a one-day specialist and yet began with a score of one and bowling figures of none for 35. He was tried out in tests against South Africa at Bloemfontein, sending critics into a gleeful search for the proverbial last nail that could be slammed into India’s coffin. By the end of Day One, they were seen using the other side of the hammer, as the nails came out quickly and silently, one after another – he had just scored a hundred on debut.
Either desperation or inspiration forced the team’s think-tank to send him opening in the first test against England at the Lords in 2002. He scored 84 in the first innings and followed it with a 106 in the first innings of the second test. (His Highness, the Nawab of Najafgarh goes ballistic in the first innings and annihilates the opposition. In the second innings, he rests.)
If he defies convention when he bats, he defies political correctness when he speaks. After blasting the hapless Pakistani bowlers for a double ton, he then went on to blast the pitch in public when over nine hundred runs were scored in the first three days. By the end of the test, his crosshairs shifted focus yet again, from the pitch to his teammates – the batsmen in particular. Not only did he consider himself ‘the only batsman capable of leading India to a win’, he also came down heavily on other Indian batsmen for ‘playing for a draw’. At the end of the first one-dayer at Kochi, he could not hide his disappointment at the likes of Yuvraj and Kaif not being able to take India to the 300-run mark, a target that they were cruising towards, even at the end of 40 overs. (Perhaps Sehwag would do well to remember two things. One, if there ever comes a day when your bat stops talking, the world will bay for your blood. Ask Dada! Two, when you talk, the world listens to you. Be hauled up by the ‘powers that be’ and you hang alone. Ask Cheeka!)
He was considered a one-day specialist and yet began with a score of one and bowling figures of none for 35. He was tried out in tests against South Africa at Bloemfontein, sending critics into a gleeful search for the proverbial last nail that could be slammed into India’s coffin. By the end of Day One, they were seen using the other side of the hammer, as the nails came out quickly and silently, one after another – he had just scored a hundred on debut.
Either desperation or inspiration forced the team’s think-tank to send him opening in the first test against England at the Lords in 2002. He scored 84 in the first innings and followed it with a 106 in the first innings of the second test. (His Highness, the Nawab of Najafgarh goes ballistic in the first innings and annihilates the opposition. In the second innings, he rests.)
If he defies convention when he bats, he defies political correctness when he speaks. After blasting the hapless Pakistani bowlers for a double ton, he then went on to blast the pitch in public when over nine hundred runs were scored in the first three days. By the end of the test, his crosshairs shifted focus yet again, from the pitch to his teammates – the batsmen in particular. Not only did he consider himself ‘the only batsman capable of leading India to a win’, he also came down heavily on other Indian batsmen for ‘playing for a draw’. At the end of the first one-dayer at Kochi, he could not hide his disappointment at the likes of Yuvraj and Kaif not being able to take India to the 300-run mark, a target that they were cruising towards, even at the end of 40 overs. (Perhaps Sehwag would do well to remember two things. One, if there ever comes a day when your bat stops talking, the world will bay for your blood. Ask Dada! Two, when you talk, the world listens to you. Be hauled up by the ‘powers that be’ and you hang alone. Ask Cheeka!)
Try applying a pattern to his performances and you are stumped – it is never the same. There are times when he starts like a Rolls Royce, smooth and silent and launches into overdrive so fast, you don’t realise that the man has reached his 50. There are times when he kick-starts like a bullet, noisy and powerful, and makes heads turn with every pull and every loft. And of lately, there have been several times when he starts with a life, spluttering, spooning a catch, nearly-being run out…Like a ‘katara’ scooter - tilt, shake, kick, hold clutch and a minute later, taking on the streets, sending pedestrians for cover.
There is always a tendency to compare a player with the greats of the past. While Sehwag had reportedly modeled his batting style on Tendulkar’s, today the two are radically different – one has a glorious record behind him and the other, a glittering present. (But as a nation, we shall continue being a team that depends on one man – in the 80s, it was Gavaskar, in the 90s, it was Tendulkar and now, it is Sehwag. Funny how people in other countries consider cricket to be a team game!)
If there’s another player before Sehwag who, with his records, his bludgeoning strokes, his brutal assault of bowlers and his staggering strike-rate, excelled in both versions of the game, it has to be Aravinda ‘Mad Max’ de Silva. Just compare the two – both right-handed batsmen, both crafty off-break bowlers, both capable of winning a match single-handed. And both with a passion for fast cars – nothing like a roaring drive down the fast track, complete with the smell of burning rubber. While Aravinda has had 93 tests and 309 one-dayers to prove himself as a bowler, Sehwag has surged ahead as a batsman, with a higher average and a better strike-rate. (That’s what happens when Sehwag is compared to any player. Even a strike rate of 81.13 can look second-rate!)
From 1984 to 2003, Mad Max spun a tornado across every cricket ground in the world, leaving behind a devastated opposition. And now, it’s the turn of the sequel.
There again lies a difference. This could turn out to be a sequel that could just be better than the original.
If there’s another player before Sehwag who, with his records, his bludgeoning strokes, his brutal assault of bowlers and his staggering strike-rate, excelled in both versions of the game, it has to be Aravinda ‘Mad Max’ de Silva. Just compare the two – both right-handed batsmen, both crafty off-break bowlers, both capable of winning a match single-handed. And both with a passion for fast cars – nothing like a roaring drive down the fast track, complete with the smell of burning rubber. While Aravinda has had 93 tests and 309 one-dayers to prove himself as a bowler, Sehwag has surged ahead as a batsman, with a higher average and a better strike-rate. (That’s what happens when Sehwag is compared to any player. Even a strike rate of 81.13 can look second-rate!)
From 1984 to 2003, Mad Max spun a tornado across every cricket ground in the world, leaving behind a devastated opposition. And now, it’s the turn of the sequel.
There again lies a difference. This could turn out to be a sequel that could just be better than the original.
(Appeared in the New Indian Express Sunday Supplement on 10 April, 2005)
No comments:
Post a Comment