“Giving that first punch, it inspired me”: Indian players express admiration for Virender Sehwag

"Giving that first punch, it is one thing that has inspired me. Fearless. Everyone after him could come out express themselves and enjoy their knocks," said Suryakumar.

Chennai: Current Indian players have openly expressed their admiration for the former Indian opener, Virender Sehwag, whose fearless and aggressive style of cricket entertained millions of fans worldwide, with one of his trademarks being his penchant for hitting boundaries on the very first ball.

In a video posted by the International Cricket Council (ICC), Indian stars like vice-captain Hardik Pandya, Shubman Gill, Ravindra Jadeja and number one T20I batter Suryakumar Yadav talked about what made the ‘Nawab of Najafgarh’ so special and entertaining.

---

“I think that on every first ball, he hit for a boundary, it was very exciting. Destructive. He was that one player who was entertaining and also put fear in the bowlers,” said Hardik as quoted in a video by ICC.

Suryakumar said that Sehwag’s ability to deliver the “first punch” inspired him as a player and after a good Sehwag knock, those coming after him could express themselves freely too.

“Giving that first punch, it is one thing that has inspired me. Fearless. Everyone after him could come out express themselves and enjoy their knocks,” said Suryakumar.

The all-rounder Jadeja pointed out that the batter used to set a platform for those coming later as an opener.

“He used to set a platform as an opener. Danger. He played in a relaxed manner, and knew his game and mindset well,” he said.

Gill said that he used to turn on his TV just to witness Sehwag send the ball racing to the fence on his or inning’s very first ball.

“Just for that one ball, I used to tune in to the TV. It kept happening every match and it was insane,” he said.

Sehwag is considered as one of the best openers the game ever produced. In 251 ODIs, he scored 8,273 runs at an average of 35.05 and a strike rate of over 104. He scored 15 centuries and 38 fifties in his ODI career, with the best score of 219.

In his ICC Cricket World Cup career, Sehwag scored 843 runs in 22 matches at an average of 38.31 with a strike rate of over 106. He scored two centuries and three fifties in WCs, with the best score of 175.

The 2011 Cricket World Cup was the highest point of Sehwag’s career, scoring 380 runs in eight matches at an average of 47.50 and a strike rate of over 122. He scored a century and fifty, with the best score of 175. He was part of the Men in Blue side which lifted the trophy.