Friday, June 29, 2007

'Nothing wrong with Sehwag's technique'


Maharashtra Herald June 21, 2007

BY SUHRID BARUA

PUNE: It’s a prolonged lull that has tested not only the patience of the selectors, but also even his staunchest supporters. Nobody can disagree that the huge blade of Sehwag has been on mute mode for a fairly long time now. Just when it seemed that there would be no end to slump in his batting form, the Najafgarh bloke raised visions of getting into Sehwag-like groove during the recent Afro-Asia Cup in India, where he clobbered two knocks replete with scorching strokes to all parts of the ground.
It was clear that the selectors were still not convinced about his run-getting ways despite his fine showing in the Afro-Asia Cup and cold-shouldered him for the upcoming tours of Ireland and England. Probably the 40s and 50s are not enough to force the selectors’ doors open. Big hundreds were all what the five wise men of Indian cricket must have been anticipating from Sehwag after a forgettable World Cup showing in the West Indies.
The fierce competition for places in the Indian team is only going to make his comeback journey even sterner. With the current Test pair of Wasim Jaffer and Dinesh Karthik doing enough to justify the faith of the selectors, a spot at the top of the order in the longer version of the game looks a far cry. Even in the one-dayers as well, the task is cut out for Sehwag. The presence of seasoned players like Sourav Ganguly and Sachin Tendulkar can also greatly negate his plans of staging comeback.
However, Sehwag’s coach Amar Nath Sharma firmly believes that it is not the end of the road for his ward. “I agree that Veeru would find it tougher than before to force his way into the side. Competition for places is always there, but remember one thing; ups and downs are part and parcel of life and cricket is no exception. I can tell you Veeru is working hard on his game and would be back in the national side sooner than later,” Sharma told Maharastra Herald on Thursday.
The Delhi-based coach, who first spotted Sehwag at the Government Boys School ground at Vikas Puri in West Delhi when he was just fourteen, pointed out that players of Sehwag’s calibre doesn’t emerge just out of nothing. “He’s a special talent. We have seen how he has decimated the best attacks of the world when on song. I’m confident that he would bounce back and silence his detractors,” he said.
Widely perceived to be a victim of technical kinks, Sharma was quick to clarify that all these loose talk doesn’t do any good to his confidence. “I don’t see anything amiss in his game technique-wise. People are jumping the gun because the Sehwag run-machine has gone dry for far too long. He looked very good when he slammed a blistering 168 for ONGC in the DDCA Hot Weather tournament a few days back. It is only a matter of time before he fires again,” Sharma explained.

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