File image of Virender Sehwag and Shoaib Akhtar© AFP
India vs Pakistan – that is one cricket rivalry which throws up many stories that have the potential to become folklores. Virender Sehwag and Shoaib Akhtar are part of that cricket rivalry. While one was an ace opener, who changed the definition of batting at the top in Indian cricket, the other was one of the fastest bowlers that the world has ever seen. The two were fiercely competitive on the field, while off the field they shared a great friendship. They often indulged in banter too. A new episode that been added to that relationship.
“You guys indulge in lot of banter. Is there any friendship under this banter?” Sehwag was asked on Breakfast With Champions.
“Where there is love, there is banter or where there is friendship. With Shoaib Akhtar I have deep friendship since 2003-04. We have gone there twice, they have come twice. There’s friendship and we pull each other’s leg too. He made a statement. I have more notes than the amount of hair strands Virender Sehwag has on his head. Now My hair strands are more than your notes. That tagline would be cool for ‘Breakfast With Champions’.”
The Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023 final turned out to be a sporting spectacle that saw Ravindra Jadeja score 10 runs from the final two balls of the match, taking Chennai Super Kings across the line. The final over of the match was all going as per plan for GT, with Mohit Sharma conceding just 3 runs from the first 4 balls. However, the veteran pacer’s rhythm seems to have been shaken a bit following a brief chat with skipper Hardik Pandya, which former India cricketer Virender Sehwag wasn’t pleased to see.
In a chat on Cricbuzz, Sehwag lambasted Hardik for his decision to intervene despite Mohit managing to execute plans to perfection.
“When some is bowling well and is delivering with yorkers, why will you go and have a word with him? He knows that the batter needs 10 from 2 and that he needs to stick with yorkers. Then why will you waste his time? Had Mohit been hit for runs, then he could have gone and had a word, but when the bowler is doing his job you want to get done with the over quickly.
“It also could be that the captain might have come with a concern about whether the bowler would want any changes in the field for the last two balls. But still, if I would have been there, I wouldn’t have disturbed him,” Sehwag said after the match.
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