The Sehwag threads [Merged]

[Guest HariSampath]

No' date=' because that isn't my logic. Sehwag played poorly for one full season, not just 3 tests.[/quote'] But see his record for his last 3 series / 13 inngs... he averages more than all the other openers in their careers

[Guest HariSampath]

Sehwag's average for 2006/7 in tests ( at his worst run) is 35....none of the other openers come close, by international standards. The issue is if Sehwag had to be dropped for that, then why even consider players like Chopra and Gambhir, who are known failures in international test cricket particularly

[talksport]

Sehwag all the way.....

[fineleg]

I hope Sehwag can go to Aus just so that all the folks who keep touting him ignoring his form will understand what a big mistake it is to take him.

[Bumper]

Great thread Hari. Sehwag is the best opener India has had since Gavaskar. Openers like him dont come too often. They must be wrapped in cotton/wool & protected. I cant believe we've lost our all time great opener because one man in the selection commitee did not like him. So what if Sehwag had a poor year ? Do we not back other batsmen in similar form ? Players like Sehwag cannot be expected to go back to counties or domestic competitions and pile on the runs. They dont have that kind of work ethic. Sehwag revels on confidence. When he had Ganguly to back him to the hilt, he performed like there was no tomorrow. He is down on confidence at the moment. Sehwag is no different than a common man. How many of us, have not gone thru rough patches in our life ? The times, we wished, if only someone can back me or motivate me, how different my life would be ? Sehwag is going through a crisis. At this time, he needs our backing. He WILL COME GOOD. And when he does, there is simply no better sight in cricket.

[chamatkar]

I hope Sehwag can go to Aus just so that all the folks who keep touting him ignoring his form will understand what a big mistake it is to take him.

Actually, what they'll say is .. look, he had one bad series... and then bring up his averages before this series (see above in thread) all over again... There's a saying - Live and learn...

[chamatkar]

Openers like him dont come too often. They must be wrapped in cotton/wool & protected.

I think you forgot to add "put in a sarcophagus and stored for time immemorial, so that he doesn't haunt Indian cricket ever again"....

[Guest dada_rocks]

Sehwag' date=' even in his worst run of forms, last had scores of 31, 65, 33 and 40 among his last 8 inngs or so. If this merited dropping him, how come Karthik should be playing now ? [b']The bottoom line is Sehwag at his worst is better than the Karthiks, Gambhirs and Chopras at their best.

Aapne 1 billion $ ki baat kahi hai:two_thumbs_up:

[fineleg]

Actually, what they'll say is .. look, he had one bad series... and then bring up his averages before this series (see above in thread) all over again... There's a saying - Live and learn...

Yes. Well, its good that selectors kicked him outta the 24 :two_thumbs_up:

[DesiChap]

Group A: Maharashtra v Delhi at Nagothane - Dec 9-12, 2007 Sehwag better mark this on his calender and get a big 100. The only way he gets back to the team is by performing in the domestics.

[fineleg]

This is exactly the problem. One 100 against a team just before selection proves nothing. He needs to show consistency. Let him be consistent for some months, and then we will evaluate for SA in India series. Hopefully irrespective of how some ICF-ers feel :D, selectors will just go with the original 24 which means bye bye oz tour for VS.

[guju24]

Sehwag's average for 2006/7 in tests ( at his worst run) is 35....none of the other openers come close' date=' by international standards. The issue is if Sehwag had to be dropped for that, then why even consider players like Chopra and Gambhir, who are known failures in international test cricket particularly[/quote'] plus that was sehwag's worst avg in test cricket...his overall his above 50 and chopra, ghambir, karthik or even jaffer is not close to that...

[Guest HariSampath]

Actually, what they'll say is .. look, he had one bad series... and then bring up his averages before this series (see above in thread) all over again... There's a saying - Live and learn...

Ok, as we had seen all these Chopras and Gambhirs score double tons in games against Saurashtra , Himachal Pradesh...and played them against top test sides, only to see them fail repeatedly time and again...what have we learnt ? you want us to do the same mistake again and select these proven failures once again based on their Ranji scores ? Then if these chaps fail again....you will be saying..allrite one more test...once more to redeem himself etc, when these so called openers are just pale jokes...what do we learn ?

[Anakin]

If GG can ever be half the batsman Sehwag has been, I'll be happy. I'm for playing Sehwag asap. He still has some more cricket left in him.

[bharat297]

You don't have to like Aakash Chopra but anyone who thinks Chopra failed in Australia in 2003/04 ... 1. Didn't watch the series 2. Relies purely on stats to back up their judgement I cant imagine anyone who watched the series in 2003/04 , thinking Chopra had anything but a good series. He did the job that was asked of him and he did it every match. Since it was in Australia, I was able to not only watch every ball on TV, but also go to a few of the matches aswell and see them play live. Chopra is a reliable opener who does the job. He, and Sehwag, did the hard work, saw off the new ball, got the Australian bowlers tired, and then the middle order came in and cashed in. I would have no problem with a Chopra/Jaffer combination, especially as Jaffer seems to be a bit more aggressive nowadays.

[chamatkar]

Ok, as we had seen all these Chopras and Gambhirs score double tons in games against Saurashtra , Himachal Pradesh...and played them against top test sides, only to see them fail repeatedly time and again...what have we learnt ? you want us to do the same mistake again and select these proven failures once again based on their Ranji scores ? Then if these chaps fail again....you will be saying..allrite one more test...once more to redeem himself etc, when these so called openers are just pale jokes...what do we learn ?

The one more chance theory has been applied to Sehwag time and time again .. albeit it was for ODIs... Sehwag lacks the footwork to last long as a player. At a younger age, his hand eye coordination used to hide the fact that he lacked some other skills... over a period of time, that coordination has failed him. In his case, confidence also improved that swashbuckling style of play... but for a player low on confidence, the difference between the 2004-Sehwag and the 2007-Sehwag is the same as that between the lofted drive over cover versus the hesitant nick towards the slips. Also, his susceptibility to the incoming ball has been found out of the past three years... the combination of his inability to cleanly hit a drive versus playing the defensive stroke to the incoming delivery, means that he's often caught in two minds while playing a normal stroke.

[Guest HariSampath]

Error to ignore Sehwag : Ian Chappell FORMER Australian captain Ian Chappell believes India has made a terrible mistake in overlooking cavalier opener Virender Sehwag for the tour of Australia. The exciting Sehwag, 29, has been ignored this year by Indian selectors, despite an excellent average of 49.46 in 52 Tests. His strike rate of 75.75 runs per 100 balls remains far better than the likes of Matthew Hayden (60.02). Sehwag has fared well against Australia, but was unable to make the initial 24-man party, which will be pruned to 16 on Wednesday. "India have made their first big mistake and the team hasn't even been selected, let alone set foot on Australian soil," Chappell said. "Now was not the right time to give up on Virender Sehwag." Wasim Jaffer, who thumped a double-century against Pakistan last week, and Dinesh Karthik are currently the preferred openers. "Forget about whose nose might have been put out of joint, the Australians still fear Sehwag from the last tour. It's rare that you have a chance to put one over on the Baggy Green caps, so when the opportunity arises, you grab it with both hands," Chappell wrote in his Cricinfo column. "He can not only score a Test hundred, he can also do it in a hurry and against new-ball bowlers. The batsman's role is to score quickly in order to give the bowlers as long as possible to take the required 20 wickets to win a Test. Sehwag's batting leaves you with more time than a flight that arrives early." Two of Sehwag's 12 Test centuries have come against Australia. The first, 195, was at the MCG four years ago. Australia found him the hardest man to bowl to because he could concoct shots most thought impossible. "If for no other reason, India should have played Sehwag against Australia just to see if he could rattle Brett Lee and force him to forget the McGrath impersonations," Chappell said.

[Chandan]

"He can not only score a Test hundred, he can also do it in a hurry and against new-ball bowlers. The batsman's role is to score quickly in order to give the bowlers as long as possible to take the required 20 wickets to win a Test. Sehwag's batting leaves you with more time than a flight that arrives early."

I wish Sehwag could still do that. Looks like Ian is not knowing the fact how horribly out of form Sehwag is at the moment. He hasn't played even one inning sice the WC which could suggest that he could do the things which he did 3-4 years back. How I wish he plays like that even in one inning even in Ranji!!

[Guest HariSampath]

I wish Sehwag could still do that. Looks like Ian is not knowing the fact how horribly out of form Sehwag is at the moment. He hasn't played even one inning sice the WC which could suggest that he could do the things which he did 3-4 years back. How I wish he plays like that even in one inning even in Ranji!!

Sure Chappell knows very well. It is difficult for some batsmen to motivate themselves to get big hundreds in local cricket, but they will well do so in the international level. There was a similar situation in 1982/82 when Sandip Patil, another great stroke player had been failing in many tests in India, and was taken to England. There too in the first class games he was repeatedly failing and averaged 6.3..but Gavaskar shrewdly pitchforked him directly into the 11 in the Manchester test, and Patil made a classic 129 notout , hitting Willis for six 4s in an over. Some batsmen need the international setting and will get back into form at the moment in the right place. In any case, Sehwag is a class act, proven performer and a world class opener by any standards against hostile bowling in Aussie conditions. He should have never been dropped from tests, and should never even be on trial. He is a straightforward selection

[Mr. Wicket]

Agree there Hari. Sehwag is a big situation player. Look at his last two World Cups. 03, he threatened in earlier games but didn't do that much. In the Super Six, he delivered against Sri Lanka and then was our top scorer in the final. In 07, he was the one batsman who actually stood up in the key must-win game when all others failed. His records against Bangladesh and Zimbabwe are piss poor. His records against Australia and Pakistan, India's two most high profile test opponents, are amazing. It's not like a Dravid or Laxman where booting him back to the Ranjis will allow him to introspect, sort his technique and gameplan out and start accumulating big scores. His situation IMO is more like Ganguly's, where he really needs the boot up his arse and then can return. Agree with most of the points you've stressed, bar Chopra - whom I view as a far more valuable player than just an opener, and would want to see in the squad given the combination of him being India's best short leg fieldsman in a decade or so and his batting (which has actually improved a good deal in the last season and a bit).