'Abe, Sehwag ki batting dekhke chalte hain'

Everyone will have a favourite Sehwag innings - Multan, MCG, Galle, Brabourne. He undoubtedly had an appetite for daddy hundreds. For me however it will always be the 12* (Chennai 2004 vs Australia), for the sheer possibilities that lay in store on the fifth day that never happened. I consider this special not for what it was but for what could have been. The brace of straight drives past McGrath on the fourth day evening will stay in the memory of anyone who watched that game.

I now will not expect a batsman to hit a boundary of the first ball of a match, irrespective of the format, irrespective of the opposition, irrespective of the bowler and irrespective of the ground, because there will be no batsman to believe that when the ball is to be hit, it will be hit. The memories of him thwacking Umar Gul for five boundaries in a single over in a World Cup semi-final are still fresh in my mind. Tim Southee wouldn't have forgotten the way he was smashed for three sixes in first three balls of the game. I will miss waiting for Gauti and Viru to open the Indian innings and being confident of a good start.

The summer of 2004 was one of the most testing (pun intended) periods of my life, full of high-stakes board exams, and about a dozen apparently-even-higher-stakes engineering entrance exams. But, the stand-out memory of the summer for me is India's tour of Pakistan - probably my favourite series of all time. It was the first time in my cricket-watching life that we were actually touring Pakistan, and for a cricket-crazy 17-year-old, there was no dearth of heroes in our team - Sachin, Dravid, Ganguly, Kumble - most of them at their peak. Throw in some astounding performances by two young pacers in Pathan and Balaji, and we get a perfect series. The crown jewel of the summer however belongs to Sehwag. The adrenaline-filled 309 at Multan is, and will remain, one of the most deeply satisfying innings I have ever watched. There is indeed something cathartic about carting Saqlain for a six to reach a triple-hundred. In Pakistan! Thank you for all the memories, Viru.

I was watching a benefit match in Pune, the year may be 1996 or 1997. There was a buzz that a lot of big names including Sachin were to play. And Pune (in their old stadium) never got any international cricket those days. So they were queuing up in the morning.

Rahul Dravid came into bat and there was pandemonium, in anticipation that bigger stars were about to come. And then something happened. A little man walked in as replacement... to field (benefit games always saw player replacements). He walked like Tendulkar. The crowd were in delirium. He stood in the slips like the Little Master and even waved to the crowd like the Little Master. The entire ground kept wondering whether this was their Sachin moment. And then he left the field (another replacement). People went sad! Innings got over. It was time for the other team … "his" team to bat!

Out came the little man - same helmet, same stature. Took the guard, same stance. And then came the difference - A bludgeon of a square cut, and another …and another. One thing was certain - This wasn't Sachin... no way!.

I waited for the next day's papers to confirm the name - an upcoming batsman from Delhi - Virender Sehwag.

It was back in 2001 when I was 9, a newbie in cricket and a year since when I started following cricket religiously. It was first match of a five-ODI series between India and Australia.

The day was a Sunday, and it was customary for my father to take me to the hair saloon every alternate Sunday. I somehow avoided it till the 20th over of Indian inning. I remember India was struggling with 4 wickets down with 120 odd runs on board. There came a little man at No. 6 to join Rahul Dravid at crease. When I saw Rahul Dravid batting along with a new guy; I expected a score not more than 250. And instead of watching this naya ladka (new boy) play, I left with my father for haircut.

But to my surprise there was a twist in tail, after an hour or two when we were back I suddenly realized that this 'naya ladka'had hit half-century with strike-rate more than of 100. Later he went on to pick three wickets and clinched the 'Man of the Match' award.

Later, I hardly remember missing any of the devastating innings of Viru but missing this first one; his arrival in my cricketing knowledge book still bothers me. Long live Viru. You played cricket the way you loved. And that's what we love the most in you.

Sehwag got out ... Double first-ball duck in a Test match vs England ...So I watched only two balls in that Test match...I switched off the TV...because I know entertainment part is over.

When we had to get the train and still said to our friend, "abe Sehwag ki batting dekhke chalte hain" (let's watch Sehwag's batting and then go).