Former Indian pacer and selector Madan Lal has revealed that even before Virender Sehwag made his debut for India, as many as four selectors were not in favour of having him in the side. It was later, at the instance of Madan Lal (Selector then) that Virender Sehwag was chosen for a tri-series in Sri Lanka, and the latter performed very well there. From there on, Sehwag never looked back and simply flourished.
“I knew Sehwag was a gifted cricketer. I saw him bat a couple of times and was amazed at his confidence. Besides talent, I also take into account attitude and temperament of a player. He was fearless from the beginning. Such was his confidence that he was always sure of clearing the boundary rope fielder. He only required a little backing, and I did just that,” Madan Lal told yesterday after Sehwag announced his retirement.
“I was convinced that India needed a player like Sehwag and that’s why I forced my choice on others (fellow selectors). Every selector backs some player because of their performances and certain qualities. I did the same. There was strong opposition. I don’t remember why now, but they had to ultimately give in,” said Lal.
Lal also spoke about the 2001 tour to South Africa, when Sehwag made a test century on debut. “He had not performed well in the first few matches of the tri-series and there was a lot of discussion on calling him back. But I put my foot down. Sehwag was a match-winner. The team needed a guy like him with the way he would win matches for us. He could dominate any attack and seeing him hit the bowlers fearlessly also gave confidence to other players in the dressing room,” Madan Lal said. Sehwag stayed back, scored a magnificent 105 on Test debut against South Africa at Bloemfontein and the rest is history,” said Lal.
The late Jaywant Lele, former BCCI secretary also seconded Lal’s words when he had said in March 2013, “Madan used to bring up Sehwag’s name at every selection committee meeting chaired by Chandu Borde. But he was never considered. Madan came to know that Borde and I share a good equation so, he tried to push Sehwag’s case through me. I persuaded Borde to give Sehwag a chance. Chandu agreed on the condition that I back him in case there are questions from the media.”