NEW DELHI: Virender Sehwag is credited with transforming the Indian cricket landscape in the 2000s through his destructive and explosive batting, delivering results even in overseas Tests where victories had once seemed impossible.
Despite not being regarded as one of the most technically sound batters, Sehwag carved his own niche and went on to score over 8,000 runs in both Test and ODI cricket.
Sehwag, revealed a tense clash with then-India coach Greg Chappell during a lean patch in his career. Chappell criticised Sehwag's batting technique, saying he wouldn't succeed at the international level without moving his feet properly.
Sehwag, who is also known for not mincing his words, pointed out his record of over 6,000 Test runs at an average above 50, but Chappell dismissed the argument and repeated his criticism.
"Greg Chappell's words hurt me. There was a time when I wasn't scoring runs, and he told me, 'if you don't move your feet, you won't score runs at the international level. I replied back saying, 'Greg, I have scored 6000 runs in Test cricket at an average of more than 50'. He said it doesn't matter and again told me if I don't move my feet, I won't score runs," Sehwag said on The Life Saver podcast.
The exchange soon turned into a heated argument, prompting Rahul Dravid, the then-captain, to intervene and defuse the situation. Sehwag recalled how, before he went out to bat the next day, Chappell pressured him again, warning that if he didn't score runs, he would be dropped.
"We had a big argument. Rahul Dravid, who was the captain then, had to separate us. The next day, when I was going to bat, he said, 'Make sure you score runs; otherwise, I will drop you.' I was like,'Do whatever you want'. Imagine a batter is going to bat, and that's the kind of thing he hears from the coach," Sehwag said.
Sehwag also recounted an incident where, upon returning to the dressing room at lunch, he told Dravid to ensure Chappell stayed away from him. Sehwag walked the talk on the field by scoring 184 in that match and later told Chappell that he knew how to score runs, regardless of whether he moved his feet or not.
"When I took strike, I started smashing the ball and reached 99 runs before lunch. When I was entering the dressing room, Dravid was standing there. I told him, 'Tell your coach not to come near me.' I had my lunch, and after returning, I continued batting. I was out close to tea after scoring 184. Then I looked at him [Chappell] standing in a corner and told him, 'Doesn’t matter if I move my feet or not, I know how to score runs.'"
