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In the third and final Test against Sri Lanka, the legendary Indian opener Virender Sehwag struck 293 off just 254 deliveries as India won the match by an innings and 24 runs in Mumbai.
Virender Sehwag hit 40 boundaries and seven sixes before falling victim to Muthiah Muralitharan. (Image: ICC/X, formerly Twitter)
There are many instances where Virender Sehwag has proven why he deserves the title of the most aggressive opening batter in cricket history. Not only in the white-ball formats, but Sehwag had also showcased his big-hitting prowess in Tests where patience and composure were regarded as key elements.
One of his explosive knocks in red-ball cricket came against Sri Lanka during a home series on this day (December 4) in 2009. In the third and final Test of the bilateral assignment, Sehwag struck 293 off just 254 deliveries as India won the match by an innings and 24 runs in Mumbai.
The legendary Indian opener registered 40 boundaries and seven sixes before falling victim to Muthiah Muralitharan. The then-Sri Lankan captain Kumar Sangakkara won the toss and elected to bat first at the Brabourne Stadium which was hosting a Test match for the first time since 1973.
With opener Tillakaratne Dilshan contributing with a valiant century, the visitors produced a competitive total of 393 runs in the first innings. Among the other Sri Lankan batters, Tharanga Paranavitana scored 53 while Angelo Mathews failed to breach the triple-figure mark by just one run. From India, Harbhajan Singh claimed a four-wicket haul and Pragyan Ojha picked three.
Virender Sehwag opened India’s innings with Murali Vijay. The duo stitched a 221-run partnership, with Vijay adding 87 runs to the scoresheet. Following his dismissal, Rahul Dravid joined hands with Sehwag and racked up 237 runs together.
Sehwag completed his hundred off 101 balls with a sweep to the fine leg. He needed 29 balls more to reach 150 and brought up his double-century in the 168th delivery.
Dravid also enjoyed a good outing and scored 74 while VVS Laxman and Sachin Tendulkar also made fifties. MS Dhoni chipped in with a captain’s knock and remained unbeaten at 100.
India had declared their innings after posting 726 at a loss of nine wickets. Coming to chase a mammoth lead of 333 runs, Sri Lanka suffered a batting collapse.
Kumar Sangakkara was the standout performer for the visiting unit. He registered 137 off 261 balls while the majority of his teammates returned with a single-digit score. With the commanding victory in Mumbai, India won the Test series by a margin of 2-0.
