Virender Sehwag Not Far From Sunil Gavaskar As India's Best Opener - Sourav Ganguly

Former Team India opener Virender Sehwag is one of the devastating top-order batsmen the world cricket has ever witnessed. His ability to dispatch bowlers send tremors down their spine. Recently, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) President Sourav Ganguly hailed Sehwag calling him one of the greatest openers to play for India.

The Nawab of Nazafgarh was instrumental in India’s success over a significant period. He formed much-needed partnerships with Sachin Tendulkar and Gautam Gambhir at the top order to give India a formidable start. Making his debut in 1999, Virender Sehwag struggled to gain grounds in the early stages of his career. It was under the leadership of Sourav Ganguly where he became a permanent member of the playing XI. It was Ganguly, who promoted Sehwag at the top-order which changed his career.

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Virender Sehwag was one of the best – Sourav Ganguly

The former India skipper recently hailed Sehwag, who is due to deliver the seventh Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi Memorial Lecture. Ganguly regarded him as one of the biggest match-winners of the generation as an opener. He said Sehwag was not far from the legendary Sunil Gavaskar, who is regarded as the best opener of all-time. Virender Sehwag, on many occasions, has also credited Sourav Ganguly for his success in international cricket.

“Sehwag was the biggest match-winner in that generation as an opener. I had my own belief. I told him listen, ‘Nobody comes with a batting position. It’s how you adjust’. The best players are made when they come out of their comfort zone,” Ganguly was quoted as saying by India Today.

“If I had batted at No. 4 or No. 5 in one-day cricket, I would have been half the player. The same with Sachin, he would have scored half the runs he scored if he had batted in the middle. I said ‘just get out of this comfort zone and go and play,” he added.

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Virender Sehwag has scored over 16000 international runs during his illustrious career. He was a part of the 2007 and 2011 World Cup-winning squads and played a pivotal role in shaping India’s campaign. Sourav Ganguly hailed Sehwag as the best and said he was one of them who changed the modern-idea of batting with his powerful hitting.