I was 'scared' of facing only 1 bowler, reveals Virender Sehwag

Bengaluru, Oct 20: Virender Sehwag, the man who destroyed some of the best bowling attacks in world cricket, has revealed he was "scared" of facing one particular bowler.

Dhoni's tribute for Sehwag" title="Full text of Sehwag's statement; Dhoni's tribute for Sehwag" />Full text of Sehwag's statement; Dhoni's tribute for Sehwag

On Tuesday (October 20), while celebrating his 37th birthday, Sehwag decided to bring the curtains down on his illustrious international career. Along with it, he also bid adieu to the Indian Premier League (IPL) Twenty20 tournament. (Sehwag's career in numbers)

Having redefined the way Test cricket is played, Sehwag was a nightmare for many of the bowlers. The Delhi batsman did not give much importance to the technical aspects of the game. He relied on his instincts.

The "Nawab of Najafgarh" had one simple principle in his batting - "See-the-ball-hit-the-ball". That worked for him for 14 years.

As he waved goodbye to top-flight cricket, Sehwag admitted that he was "scared" of facing Sri Lankan spin legend Muttaiah Muralitharan and nobody else.

"There was only one - Muralitharan. I was scared of Muralitharan, to face him and score against him. I managed to score a couple of hundreds against him but only after 2008. Before that I was very scared and I could not score against Muralitharan. He is the bowler I was scared of," Sehwag told "ANI" news agency on Tuesday. Muralitharan, regarded as the best off-spinner of the game, had retired with a record 800 Test wickets.

Sehwag had not played for India since March 2013 and he leaves the cricket field with his head held high, accumulating over 17,000 international runs.

OneIndia News