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| Ramiz Raja |
Calcutta: Four years ago, former Pakistan captain Ramiz Raja (then the Pakistan Cricket Board chief executive) was in the TEN Sports commentary box in Multan when Virender Sehwag smashed his maiden triple hundred. On Friday, he was wearing the Neo Sports colours when Sehwag got his second --- the fastest in history.
A couple of hours after the day’s play, a totally bowled over Ramiz (a one-time opener himself) spoke to The Telegraph from Chennai.
The following are excerpts
On Sehwag’s second triple hundred
Words can’t describe this innings... I mean, you could use all the adjectives and they may still not be enough... Sehwag’s flow, improvisation, the tempo... An absolutely brilliant innings... His partners (Wasim Jaffer and then Rahul Dravid) lacked his flamboyance, but the tempo of the innings didn’t suffer. Clearly, he wasn’t playing only for himself... It’s because of this one innings that India have a great chance of going 1-0 up.
Comparisons with the Multan triple
Because that was a series in Pakistan and had been billed as a big one, the pressure had been a lot more... However, technically, I’d rate the one on Friday better... The South Africans are very professional and you don’t expect them to give anything away... Yet, Sehwag’s already taken 309! What’s remarkable is that the nature or quality of the attack doesn’t bother him... The tempo, for example, won’t suffer because he’s up against the Australians.
Sehwag’s approach
I like his calm manner... his composure... I think his temperament is exceptional and the nervous 90s or the 190s or even the 290s aren’t for him... He gets past them in a flash, unlike most batsmen who start to weigh options when approaching milestones...My impression is that he doesn’t play for milestones. In many ways, Sehwag reminds me of (Sir) Viv Richards and, today, he’s the best advertisement for Test cricket... I won’t be wrong in saying that this triple is going to attract many more to Test cricket... Just look at the records he erased in getting to his second triple.
His thoughts on Sehwag as a person
(Laughs) Let me first say that I’m his lucky charm! He’s quite simple, doesn’t seem to have airs and talks straight from the heart.
What he liked most in Sehwag’s triple No.2
A lot of things, really... Composed flamboyance, the command he exercised... Absolutely awesome... The six over slips, the cuts, the off-drives... It’s said that Sehwag isn’t strong on leg, but he got a lot of runs there...
Where would he place this innings?
Certainly the best in over a decade of doing TV commentary... Indeed, as a member of the media, I haven’t seen a finer knock... Overall, it’s difficult to say off-hand as, sometimes, even a 39 not out could be very crucial and have a big impact on the result.
Whether Sehwag will now be acknowledged as a great
Look, he’s special and I’d pay to watch him and not some of the others with better averages... He’s a first class entertainer.
On the Chepauk Test only being Sehwag’s third since his comeback in Perth
Well, yes... I interviewed him at stumps and he said he’d been hurt at being dropped from Test cricket and was determined to prove a point... In the long run, consistency could be a problem with somebody like Sehwag, because of the way he plays, but when he gets going then the opposition is at a complete loss... He can give his team such a big advantage... That’s something which needs to be kept in mind... Even if he’s not in form, he should be persisted with... Sehwag can’t change his game and, if you ask me, he shouldn’t be advised to do so.
Finally, whether Sehwag can break Brian Lara’s world record of 400 not out
He can, of course, provided he doesn’t begin looking at the scoreboard... The pitch won’t change much and the South African attack lacks variety... So, Saturday could well be a big day for Indian cricket in particular and world cricket in general.
