The methodically mad phoenix

In 2007, Virender Sehwag was jettisoned from the Indian Test squad mostly because of a series of failures in the ODI arena. He made the Indian team to Australia in 2007 in controversial circumstances at the expense of Aakash Chopra, and waited. The Sydney Test of 2007 was seminal for many reasons, but the least momentous one was the decision to go back to Sehwag for the next Test. That victory in Perth was followed by a brilliant rearguard action at Adelaide, made possible by Sehwag's 151 in the second innings. Two innings of coruscating (and contrasting) brilliance followed - 319 against South Africa on a featherbed of a pitch and 201 not out against Sri Lanka and the marauding Murali and Mendis. Since then he has frustrated his supporters no end. He hasn't scored a century in his next 20 innings, though he has crossed 30 in ten of them.

But what lingers in the mind are those mammoth centuries and no one knows how to put up big scores better than Sehwag (and this includes the Don and Lara***). His last 11 Test centuries (out of a total of 15 so far) have all been over 150, a streak unmatched in Test history. Just read this list and you will see what I mean: 195, 309, 155, 164, 173, 201, 254, 180, 151, 319, 201.

(Contrast this with Ricky Ponting, the man I consider to be the most feared and remorseless batsman in Test cricket over the past 5 years. For his career, he has crossed 150 just 12 times (out of 37 centuries), and just once in the last three years.)

Happily for Sehwag, the team has done well in spite of his recent relapse into mediocrity (by his high-scoring standards) and it has saved him the scrutiny he probably deserves. As India's focus shifts towards the shorter version of the game for the next six months, a parting gift for this Test star came in the form of Wisden's Cricketer of the Year award for 2008. A significant achievement for a man who began the year on the bench as his team played their biggest opponents in Sydney. Ravi Shastri salutes the man and his accomplishment.

Virender Sehwag had to beat off the strongest of challenges by Graeme Smith to become the Leading Cricketer in the World for 2008. Sehwag did so by taking the task of opening Test innings to a new level. He sought, and often achieved, mental domination from the first ball by scoring faster than any other opening batsman has ever done on a regular basis in Test cricket: 85 runs per 100 balls in the calendar year, without any soft opponents (Smith made 488 of his Test runs against Bangladesh); Sehwag also scored at 120 per 100 balls in one-day internationals.

He hit the fastest Test triple-century ever, from only 278 balls, against South Africa. Sehwag and India softened up Australia by defeating them 2-0 in India, for Smith and South Africa to beat them in Australia. Sehwag broke a mould as well as records: he set up the highest successful run-chase in Asia, and the fourth-highest to that point, by striking England's bowlers for 83 from 68 balls at Chennai.

***P.S. Yes, I know that Don Bradman had an incredible 12 double centuries out of 29 total centuries in his career. In this post, I am simply talking about streaking big scores together, once the century is made. For those that are curious, over a career, no one has more scores over 150 than Sachin Tendulkar (18 out of 42).