Superstition kept Virender Sehwag from applauding most part of Sachin Tendulkar’s double ton in Gwalior but once the batting maestro reached 190, he shunned his belief and cheered every shot of his idol till he reached the milestone.
“I am the superstitious kind. I never praise a shot because I fear the moment I do so, the batsman gets out. Till Sachin was on 190 in Gwalior, I was rooted in my seat in the dressing room. But when he got to 190, I couldn’t contain myself. I came out and started cheering every stroke till he got to 200,” Sehwag recalled.
While Tendulkar reached the magical figure in a controlled manner, relying on singles and doubles, the Delhi marauder said he would have finished it off in a hurry.
“When he got to 180, I knew he was going to get it, but when he was in the 190s I was concerned. If I was in his place, I would have tried to finish it quickly, because the longer I take, the greater the possibility of me getting out.
I would try to wrap it up in three or four balls.
“Also, he was looking really tired: he had been clutching his right side and showing signs of cramping. So when I stepped out of my seat, I was just saying, ‘finish it, finish it’,” he wrote in his column for Cricinfo .
Sehwag said Tendukar’s patience and control over his innings, makes him an altogether different batsman.
“But Sachin is never in a hurry. He is a different kind of batsman — one who can rotate the strike with ease and understands there is no need to take any chances. Whenever I have been on the brink of landmarks he has instructed me to do this and do that. But those are things only he can do,” Sehwag said.
“You might say, this is 200 but then we are talking about Tendulkar. He looked calm and confident even when he was at the non-striker’s end in those final moments. I knew he just needed one ball, and I also knew he would get the opportunity,” he said.
Sehwag also disclosed the conversations he had with Tendulkar about this rare feat and said the Mumbai batsman was never bothered about the milestone despite expectations.
“He thought it was difficult, but I told him only he could do it. Last year in New Zealand, when he retired on 163 I told him he had missed the opportunity, but he said ‘It will eventually happen if I am destined to do it’ He said the same when he got 175 against Australia last year. On Wednesday he said woh likha tha, toh mil gaya (I got what was destined)”
Several cricket experts feel Sehwag can also achieve the feat but the Delhi player said with the attacking game he plays, it would be difficult.
“In the past certain people have said I could have scored 200 in one-day cricket, because of my performances in Tests, where I have got near to a hundred before lunch. But I have had the tendency to take too many risks once I reach the 120 or 130-run mark in ODIs. That is difference between me and Sachin,” he said.
