Published 15:10 IST, December 28th 2019
VVS Laxman becomes part of Ashish Nehra's favourite cricket moment of 2010s; here's how
VVS Laxman's valiant 96 in Durban during the 2010-11 India's tour of South Africa was a saving grace in a match which looked to be going South Africa's way.
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The 2010s saw some spectacular performances from the Indian cricket team that helped them become the No.1 Test team in the world. Former India pacer Ashish Nehra recently talked to a leading cricket portal and picked his ex-teammate VVS Laxman's match-saving effort in 2010 as his favourite Test moment of the decade. Here is what Nehra said:
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Ashish Nehra's favourite Test moment
The match that Nehra recalled was played between India and South Africa on Boxing Day of 2010 at Durban. The second Test of the series was a series-deciding encounter and a Graeme Smith-led South Africa asked India to bat first. The Indian team scored 205 in the first innings, followed by the Proteas scoring 131. The Indians then came out to solidify their lead but could not do so as most of the batting line-up fell for single-digit scores.
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After Sachin Tendulkar was dismissed for 6, VVS Laxman came in to bat and stayed till the end of the innings. Laxman scored a gritty 96 and was the last wicket to fall as the wickets at the other end kept tumbling. The biggest partnership India got was that of 70 runs, which was between VVS Laxman and Zaheer Khan. India managed to get to 228 and restricted South Africa to only 215 in the fourth innings.
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Ashish Nehra lauds VVS Laxman for his persistence
Ashish Nehra lauded Laxman's valiant effort and opined that it helped the Indian team set a formidable total for the Proteas to chase. He mentioned about the Durban wicket being a tough one to bat on. Nehra also credited Dale Steyn and Morne Morkel's lethal form for creating a lot of trouble for the Indian batsmen. He acknowledged that although Laxman had played similar innings in the past, this knock of his helped India come close to clinching their first-ever series win in South Africa and that is what made the innings memorable for Nehra.
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15:10 IST, December 28th 2019