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"Told Sachin Tendulkar to do something if I got my third triple hundred" - Virender Sehwag on his 293-run knock against Sri Lanka

Former Indian batter Virender Sehwag narrowly missed out on becoming the first-ever player to score three triple centuries in Test cricket after he was out on 293 runs against Sri Lanka in 2009.

Speaking about his knock, Sehwag recently disclosed that Sachin Tendulkar had agreed to do whatever he asked him to do if the opening batter crossed the 300-run mark in the match.

The swashbuckler noted that this was the reason why he badly wanted to score a triple century. Recalling the incident, here's what he said on 'The Ranveer Show':

"I haven't told anyone why I wanted to score my third triple hundred so badly. I won't ever reveal it in my life. I can tell you that I told Sachin Tendulkar to do something if I got my third triple hundred. He agreed to do whatever I asked him to do if I was able to get to that score."

Virender Sehwag became the first-ever Indian batter to score a triple century in Test cricket when he scored 309 runs against Pakistan in Multan in 2004. The right-handed batter's second triple ton came against South Africa in 2008, when he played a stellar 319-run knock in Chennai.

The cricketer-turned-commentator also recalled how Tendulkar messaged him after he hit the second-fastest ODI century by an Indian in 2001. Sehwag revealed that he was overwhelmed by the gesture and described it as a 'WOW' moment.

"He [Tendulkar] messaged me when I scored the second-fastest hundred in 2001. He wrote, "Well done, buddy, and see you soon. I'm very excited to bat with you." It was a WOW moment for me," he added.

It is worth mentioning that Sehwag completed his century in just 69 deliveries against New Zealand in Colombo. It was also his maiden ODI hundred.


"Very tough to handle stardom in the initial phase of one's career" - Virender Sehwag

Virender Sehwag also spoke about how he encountered a few players in his career who would not even talk to him when they did well. He claimed that those guys would only come to him if they failed in a match.

The 44-year-old reckoned that it wasn't easy for a cricketer to manage stardom, especially during the initial phase.

"I have seen so many players who wouldn't talk to me if they scored a hundred," he elaborated. "They would come to me when they got out on a duck, but when they hit another century, they would again ignore me. It is very tough to handle stardom in the initial phase of one's career."

While Virender Sehwag retired from all forms of international cricket in 2015, he remains one of the most talked about opening batters in India. He featured in 104 Tests and 251 ODIs and scored 8586 and 8273 runs, respectively.

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