The big game hunter

A game for A-class opposition. Virender Sehwag thrives on a challenge © Getty Images

When Michael Holding, West Indian legend and a man who was a cut above the fast bowlers on display in this Test, was asked whether he would have fancied a bowl on this Gaddafi Stadium pitch, he grinned. "I'd have pulled a muscle and walked off," he said with a chuckle. From a man who once bowled the West Indies to an epic victory at the Oval with a stress fracture in his foot, such words couldn't be taken seriously, but you could see where he was coming from.

With the exception of Shoaib Akhtar, who bowled the occasional snorter, the bowlers here have been nothing more than worthless props in a prolonged run-fest. That was most certainly the case with Virender Sehwag at his buccaneering best in the morning. The casual slashes over slip, the blistering cuts past point and the beautifully timed drives that fool fielders into thinking that they can stop them were all in evidence as Sehwag went from 36 to 96 in just 54 balls.

For a man supposedly stuck in a rut of poor form, he has never compromised on his approach. In seven innings for India since he lashed 201 and 38 against Pakistan at Bangalore, he had made only 158 runs, well below expectations for a man averaging comfortably over 50. But even then, there had never been a hint of struggle. The 158 runs had come from just 167 balls, a strike-rate that most batsmen can only dream of. Poor form wasn't the issue, lack of application was, and we should've known that the sight of the Pakistanis would result in it returning with a vengeance.

Bob Woolmer spoke today of how Sehwag seems to reserve his best for Pakistan, and figures of 982 runs from 10 innings before this certainly back that up. Unlike many other batsmen who make a reputation, and pad up their statistics, by pillaging the minnows and their pie-throwers, Sehwag saves his A game for A-class opposition. The sight of Glenn McGrath, Brett Lee or Shoaib appears to galvanise him into action, and the contests - Sehwag has won more than his fair share - are rarely anything but gripping.

Arun Lal, who opened for India himself, spoke this afternoon of how Sehwag had the potential to be one of the greatest openers in the game's history. According to him, most batsmen, even the greats, were sometimes hampered by a fear of failure. Such apprehension appears to have no place in Sehwag's mental make-up, and when asked after the Ahmedabad Test whether the lack of runs this season worried him, Sehwag quipped: "I'm not much of a thinker, I just go and play. My mindset is very different from that of Dravid or Tendulkar."

Don't be fooled by the glib words though. This is a man who knows his own game better than most, and plays to his strengths as well as anyone ever has. Writers of old often spoke of Victor Trumper's genius, and his apparently casual approach to the game. But like Trumper, who was rated the best sticky-wicket player of his generation, Sehwag has rarely let India down on the big occasion. The fact that he makes for such compelling viewing is merely a bonus.