Virender Sehwag reveals Sourav Ganguly's words for him after flop debut in 1999: Watch

Former Indian cricketer Virender Sehwag was regarded as a force to reckon with at the top of the order. With innumerable instances of batting brilliance throughout his career, the swashbuckling cricketer from Najafgarh had a reputation of decimating the opposition's bowling attack. The ex-cricketer, who celebrated his 42nd birthday on Tuesday divulged details about his career in his web show 'Viru Ki Baithak'.

Virender Sehwag birthday: The cricketers reveals Sourav Ganguly's words after his flop debut

Speaking on his ODI debut, Virender Sehwag reveals how elated he was when he realised he was going to take the crease against Pakistan. The 6th match of the Pepsi Cup on 1 April 1999 witnessed the debut of Virender Sehwag against the fiery Pakistani bowling attack at Mohali. The cricketer named this as one of the memorable innings that he has featured in during his prolific career. 

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Virender Sehwag revealed that he was thrilled to play his first match for the country and had informed his family and friends a day prior to the match once the team was announced. The aggressive batsman could not make much of an impact though as he was sent back to the pavilion on the very second ball he faced as he failed in reacting to the express pace of Shoaib Akhtar in time. The cricketer was disheartened after his underwhelming performance but revealed how Sourav Ganguly helped him to introspect. 

While the Indian team was travelling back to their hotel after facing an embarrassing defeat against Pakistan, Sourav Ganguly came up to Sehwag and urged him to go back to the domestic circuit to improve his game. He told Sehwag to work on his game and make a thumping comeback into the Indian team. Sehwag revealed how the piece of advice helped him eventually make a comeback under Sourav Ganguly's captaincy. 

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Virender Sehwag Stats 

The right-handed batsman amassed 8586 runs in 104 Test matches with an average of 49.3. The cricketer has two test triple centuries to his name and was also the first Indian to cross the coveted 300-figure mark. With 23 centuries and 32 half-centuries, Sehwag had established himself as an able red-ball cricketer. He has 8273 runs to his name in 251 ODs with 15 centuries and 38 half-centuries. Virender Sehwag also has an ODI double century to his name against West Indies. In 19 T20Is, the batsman has smashed 394 runs.

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Virender Sehwag age 

The ex-Indian player celebrated his 42nd birthday on Tuesday. The team of 'Viru Ki Baithak' celebrated the cricketers birthday on his daily web show with a cake. Virender Sehwag, on his birthday, spoke about memorable moments of his cricketing career. The aforementioned incident with Sourav Ganguly was also one of those moments mentioned by him. 

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Source: PTI