Heroes: VVS Laxman

Some people are surprised when we tell them who our favourite Indian cricketer of all-time is. It isn’t Sachin, Viru or Gavaskar, nor Dravid or Kapil Dev. No our Indian cricketing hero is the immaculate VVS Laxman.

 

He may not have the average of the four aforementioned batsmen (although an average of 47 isn't exactly shabby) nor can Laxman say that he inspired Indiato the World Cup like Kapil did in 1983. But Very Very Special is a classically elegant cricketer straight out of the David Gower and Mark Waugh school of batting. Sachin may be more consistent, Dravid more relentless and Sehwag more devastating, but when he is in full flow Laxman is easily the best to watch at the crease.

 

Laxman has a rather good record against Australia too, averaging 55 with 6 hundreds and 10 fifties in 24 matches, which certainly endears him to this Englishman. Indeed, the first time we saw Laxman bat in the New Year test of 2000 (as an opener, incidentally), he was taking 167 off an Australian attack featuring Warne, McGrath and Lee at Sydney. This was just a precursor of course to what happened in Calcutta some 14 months later.

 

That 281 was arguably the innings of the decade in terms of the style, the context in which it was made and the quality of the opposition bowling attack. Laxman had been promoted up to number three after hitting a fifty in the first innings. There is an argument that Indiahave sold Laxman short by restricting him to the number five or six role for the majority of his test career. Maybe now with Dravid seemingly in decline, Laxman can play out the last few years of his career in the pivotal number three role?

 

We also admire Laxman because he tends to save his runs for the big occasion (check out his record at Calcutta and Sydney – two of the best cricket venues in the world), but more importantly for when Indiareally needs them. The mammoth 281 is perhaps the best example of that. But even in his last test, India were chasing a tricky 257 against Sri Lanka and whilst Dravid and Sehwag failed and Tendulkar got out when set, it was VVS that saw India home with a brilliant 103 not out to enable India to square the series.

 

Finally, we like an underdog and Laxman Is chronically underrated. Whilst most of the plaudits go to Sachin, Dravid or Sehwag, VVS just carries on setting the bar even higher for effortless and graceful batting. Like Gower and Waugh, maybe it comes all too easily hence why his average is in the mid 40s rather than the mid 50s.

 

VVS Laxman, a batsman with grace, style and a real panache. And most definitely a Reverse Sweep hero.

 

Where next?

 

Historic India-Pakistan summit flounders on cricket diplomacy

 

World Cup 2011: How are the protagonists shaping up?

 

Zeroes: Charles Colville

 

 

 

 

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