I wanted to prove a point: Viru |
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Saturday March 29, 01:18 AM
Chennai, March 28: An ecstatic Virender Sehwag said his omission from the Bangladesh, England and Pakistan Test squads fired him to give his best at the MA Chidambaram Stadium on Friday.
"I was hurt when I was dropped for the England and Pakistan series. I wanted to prove a point and get back my place in the Indian team. Now I am doing well and this knock is a big motivation. I hope I can continue my good performance to cement my place in the side," said Sehwag, dedicating his three-figure mark to his father who died last year.
"My father always wanted me to perform well for the country. He would have been delighted had he been alive today. Apart from my father, I would also like to dedicate this knock to my wife and son.
"My wife stood by me during difficult times. I also want to thank my teammates and support staff who always encourage me," added the Delhi dasher who was "thrilled" to join the elite club of Don Bradman and Brian Lara, who have passed the 300-run mark twice in their Test careers.
Sehwag rated his triple ton off just 278 balls as his best. "I don’t have words to describe my feelings. It’s really great and I’m proud of myself. I should say my patience and concentration at the crease paid off. The run-a-ball triple hundred here was much better than the 309 I scored against Pakistan at Multan in 2004. The conditions in Chennai are testing. It’s very difficult to keep your head down," added the 29-year-old.
The swashbuckling batsman said India had a bright chance to win the Test. "We will be looking to score over 700 runs. There is no doubt that the pitch will come alive on the final day and the South African batsmen will find it tough to handle our spinners," he said.
Sehwag has a chance to rewrite Lara’s highest Test score on Saturday, but he said he wasn’t thinking about records. "Kumble asked me to hang on till the end. I played session by session. If a ball has to be hit, I hit it. That’s the way I always play. I should say Lara’s record of 400 is breakable if I keep my concentration," he said.
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