Virender Sehwag en route to his 219, in Indore, on Thursday. (AFP)

Indore: Virender Sehwag, who scored a record 219 on Thursday, said he wasn’t aiming to score a double century. The target was to bat till the 30-over mark and then take it from there. At a press conference, the Man of the Match also said he was dedicating the innings to his dad.

The following are excerpts

If he thought the double century came a bit too late

I don’t think it has come too late. I am 33 and when you’re in your 30s you’re more mature… You can try to achieve whatever you want… I thrive on expectations. People were expecting a 200 and I’m happy to have got it...

Breaking Sachin Tendulkar’s record

Sachin is my role model and I’m happy to have broken his record. Two hundred is not a benchmark set by Sachin and broken by me… It’s not easy to get a 200 and, I am telling you, it won’t be easy again. But there are some others who can achieve it... Like Chris Gayle and Shane Watson…

If he was expecting the 200 and the team piling up a mammoth target

Never… Because I was telling Gautam (Gambhir), and myself, that if we batted with little patience, we can score a big one here. This is because the wicket was good to bat on, the outfield was fantastic and the boundaries were almost 50 yards. If we show some patience and batted for 30 overs, then we can score some runs. We’ve a middle-order that is talented and have been in fine form… If we can spend time, we can give them a stiff target… But I was not expecting this 200.

If he’s dedicating the double century to anyone

My dad…he’s not with us any more but he would have been the happiest person.

The congratulatory messages

I’ve just turned my cell on and there are already close to 700/800 messages. I’ve spoken to my wife and mother and they are very happy. I also want to thank Ranbir Singh Mahendra (former BCCI president) who called me up after the Visakhapatnam match and said that he was very upset by the way I threw my wicket when the spinners came on. I told him that I would try to make amends and am happy that I could convert the start into a big knock this time. Thank you, Sir…

If the wicket made his task easier

I’ve played on better pitches. The aim was to play at least 150 balls. I’m happy I got the chance to achieve it. There are many who could have but never got it.

If the conditions made it easier

Yeah, absolutely. A true batting wicket and you had to just spend a little time and just carry on with your shots. Whenever I was hitting the shots, I was finding the gaps quite easily. When I decided to hit a six, I went and did it with a straight bat. So I think everybody was expecting me to score a double hundred… I am happy that I could live up to everybody’s expectations. Thanks to everyone… thanks to my fans and family… they supported me all the time.

If he was determined to get a good score

We had to get off to a start… In the last match, I said it at the presentation ceremony that our top-order was not contributing. It was my job and the other guys had to take the responsibility to give a good start to the team. So it is not everyday, that you get off to this kind of start. But when you get this kind of start, you end up getting 400 runs on the board.

When did he start thinking about 200 and if that changed his style of play

Never… I was playing my shots throughout the innings. I think it (the thought of getting 200) came to my mind when I was batting in the second powerplay. If I just bat through this Powerplay, then I think I can cross the 200 mark. When (Darren) Sammy dropped my catch. I thought God is with me. God was telling me that if you bat till 45-46 over you will achieve your hundred.

On how he rates this innings

This is one of my best in the one-dayers. In Tests, you get so much of time to adjust yourself… But here, you have to play your shots and maintain the run-rate. It’s tough…

If the innings will help him perform in Australia

Australia will be a different proposition… They are a good side and the preparation has to be different… We’ll try to give our best.

The decision to bat first

I had thought of fielding first here as well… But then some of the teammates, who had played the Challenger Trophy here, said that the conditions would be tough to chase… That no team had won chasing in the tournament… It was then that I decided to change my decision… The decision to bat was taken barely five minutes before the toss. We applied ourselves after settling down and could play our strokes… That made all the difference.

Running out Gautam Gambhir

It happens… I was very upset that Gautam got run out because of me… I’ve apologised to him more than 10 times in the dressing room… I want to apologise to him at this press conference, too.

If Sachin could have got his century of centuries in Indore...

He can do it anywhere… It’s only a matter of time.

Darren Sammy not shaking hands after the toss

I wasn’t surprised… He had lost four tosses in a row and was visibly disappointed…

Rahul Sharma’s performance

He has impressed on his debut… I had thought that the West Indies batsmen would have gone after him, but he bowled superbly and had them tied in knots… He has a bright future.