The silent bulwark of Indian cricket

Indian cricket has undergone a sea change. From being the soft cricketing nation which welcomed its opponents and got itself a sound thrashing to the now aggressive and sometimes brash young ‘Men in Blue’, times have changed. Today, probably one of the softer, gentler and one of the nicer guys of Indian cricket has bid adieu to the game. The shy Hyderabadi has been a pillar in a star studded Indian batting line-up in the millennium, but he seldom has got his due. It would be impossible to forget the contribution of this man to Indian cricket. In many ways, he has been the renaissance man with the 2001 series against Australia being a turning point in Indian cricket history. Vangipurappu Venkata Sai Laxman has truly been (as cliched as it may sound) very very special. He has certainly proved – “Nice guys don’t finish last”

Many a times, I have felt that VVS has been wronged. Right from the start of his career, he has been pushed. Coming from the Gundappa Vishwanath and Mohammad Azharuddin school of batsmanship, VVS scored heavily before he made his cut at the international level against South Africa when he made a polished 50. When the Indian middle order was packed to capacity, VVS was made to open the innings. Reluctant he was, but to stay in the Indian team, he had to make that sacrifice. But doing a thing with reluctance seldom makes you successful, (unless you are a maverick like Sehwag!). His career went downhill. Although, he came up with an absolute gem of 167 at Sydney in 2000 against a quality attack, it was just a flash in the pan. Laxman was never comfortable as an opener and it showed. But 2001 changed that and the rest as they say, has been history. Call it fate, but Rahul Dravid‘s loss of form was Laxman’s gain, and for a short duration, he had made the number 3 spot his very own. No one can ever forget that innings of 281 and no one will probably get tired of watching that innings! Following on with the backs to the wall, trailing 1-0 in the series and then to come up with such an astonishing knock. Hitting a beleaguered Shane Warne out from the rough and against the turn with those supple wrists. Those were some wow moments! Also, finally someone had managed to upstage Sunil Gavaskar‘s then highest score of 236. People found a new unassuming and a simple hero, someone who did his job silently but very very effectively!

However, things were not as rosy after that series. He would show flashes of brilliance but would never carry on, which got Rahul Dravid back to the number 3 position. People said that he has become overconfident, but not one to be deterred, he went back to domestic cricket and scored heavily. More importantly, he translated those performances in first class cricket to international cricket. Laxman took out all his ire on his favorite opponents, Australia, time and again. A few more gems followed. The 148 at Adelaide and 178 at Sydney, absolute masterpieces!

Laxman has faced the wrong end of the stick on more than one occasion. During the disastrous New Zealand tour of 2002, every batsman had failed, but VVS was singled out and dropped from the 2003 World Cup squad. The world would have come crashing for him, and till this day, he regrets not being a part of a World Cup team. He came back in the One-day team on the back of some strong performances in Australia, but then due to the selectors’ “youth policy”, he was again overlooked. During all this, he always maintained a stoic silence and was very dignified in his behavior, but Harare 2004 changed all that, when he spoke on TV on how someone had asked him to stay out of the team for a test match.

But now, VVS has rightfully earned his place in Indian cricket history as one if its finest willow wielders. He has been a consistent run machine and India wanted him to continue. He always used to bat in an unenviable position of number 5 where half the times, the top order scored heavily and he needed to consolidate or when the top order failed and he had to bat with the tail. But Laxman has been upto the job and donned the role manfully. He has accepted all challenges with a smile and his greatest strength is his humility. A never ending appetite for big runs, one hoped that he carried on for some time to come, but things are not always ideal in this world.

They say that something’s value only gets realized only when the thing goes missing. As a Indian cricket fan, it is going to be tough to see a test line-up without featuring Rahul Dravid and now VVS.

He may not have the brutality of a Sehwag, the solidity of a Dravid, the charisma of a Ganguly or the completeness of a Tendulkar, but he is certainly very very Special.

Doff your hats off to the silent bulwark of Indian Cricket, VVS Laxman. Thank you for the memories!