Sehwag might be felicitated at Feroz Shah Kotla

Virender Sehwag is likely to be felicitated by the BCCI during the Delhi Test

Former Indian batsman Virender Sehwag might receive a felicitation from the Board of Control for Cricket in India at the Feroz Shah Kotla, Delhi – his home ground – during the fourth and final Test between India and South Africa. After feting Zaheer Khan at the final ODI in Mumbai, the BCCI wants to give Sehwag a formal farewell.

Sehwag had retired on October 20, on his 37^th birthday, after announcing his intention to take part in the Masters Cricket League. He has also agreed to feature in the Cricket All-Stars T20 series, which is being promoted by Sachin Tendulkar and Shane Warne.

However, Sehwag is still playing in the Ranji Trophy this season and will continue to do so in the foreseeable future. He had changed his team from Delhi to Haryana in the domestic tournament earlier this year.

Sehwag performed well for India in all the formats, and his record speaks for itself. In the 104 Test matches he played, Sehwag scored 8586 runs at an average of 49.34. In the 50-over format, he scored 8273 runs at an average of 35.05.

His strike rate in all the formats is what made him an entertainer in the opinion of any cricket fan. He had strike rates of 82.23, 104.33 and 145.38 in the Test, ODI and T20I formats respectively.

The Delhi and Districts Cricket Association (DDCA) have not yet received an intimation from the BCCI on the felicitation. There are rumours that a gate at the Feroz Shah Kotla might be named after the dashing opener.

“As of now we have not received any intimation letter from BCCI, but obviously if they have expressed their wish, it must be true. We will also discuss what needs to be done at our end at DDCA. Yes, there has been talk and we have been discussing about it, but nothing concrete has come out yet,” DDCA president Sneh Prakash Bansal said.

The India-South Africa Test series is scheduled to start on November 5 in Mohali. The three other Tests are to be played at Bengaluru, Nagpur and Delhi. The fourth Test in Delhi will begin on December 3.

As per recent developments, it remains to be seen whether Delhi will, in fact, get to play host to India and South Africa for the final Test. If the issues do not become resolved, the BCCI might need to look at other venues to replace Delhi.

The BCCI and the Indian cricket fans will be hoping that the Test match in Delhi will go ahead as planned so that they can witness the swashbuckling batsman’s felicitation at his home ground.