Sheer brilliance on Boxing Day

Albeit unprecedented traditional cricket lovers are in for a treat with two Test matchesmdashAustralia v England at the Melbourne Cricket Ground MCG and South Africa v India at Centurionmdashset to begin on Boxing DayThe December 26 Test probably gains more significance in Australia and there are few better sights in global cricket than a packed MCGOver the years players have made Boxing Day special with their performancesAmong Indians only Mohammed Azharuddin 103 in Wellington NZ in 1998 and Virender Sehwag 195 at MCG in 2003 have managed centuries on that day with Sehwagrsquos knock being the more memorable oneWisden of 2005 said there were 62613 spectators at the MCG on December 26 in that 200304 Test and Sehwag just lit up the iconic ground with an innings of courage flair and entertainment Sitting in the media lounge we journalists watched Sehwag and Aakash Chopra deal with turbulence in the form of some shortpitched bowling from Brett Lee and Nathan Bracken who had made his debut in the opening game of the series in Brisbane Both were hit on the helmet and survived a torrid first session to bring up Indiarsquos first century partnership in Australia since Sunil Gavaskar and Krishnamachari Srikkanthrsquos 191 for the first wicket in the Sydney Test of 198586For a good part of the day it seemed there was only one boss of the MCG and Sehwagrsquos destruction appeared to bode well with the rebuilding work of the ground for the 2006 Commonwealth Games Across five hours and 12 minutes he smashed 25 fours and five sixesHis unconventional approach on either side of the wicket thrilled many and frustrated those for whom foot movement is an important ingredient of battingMike Coward that influential Australian cricket writer wrote in the 2005 edition of Wisden Cricketersrsquo Almanack ldquoElite Indian batsmen have often been noted for their quiet demeanour and inscrutability but Sehwag is representative of a new breed who boast a selfassuredness even cockiness A daring opener he has a simple philosophy and an uncomplicated style playing by instinct and not by the bookrdquoSehwag had his chances Two And Adam Gilchrist believed he had him stumped just before lunch Sehwag stepping outside his crease didnrsquot impress Geoff Boycott who was one of the commentators for that series Boycott paced around the media area saying if Brian Close Boycottrsquos senior at Yorkshire and England had been Sehwagrsquos captain hersquod have ldquopulled him aside to the bathroom and hit himrdquoKeith Stackpole Australiarsquos former attacking opening batsman was around too and he didnrsquot seem to have a problem with Sehwag wielding willow in his inimitable styleThe late Dean Jones turned up at his home ground to watch the action after completing his Sydney to Melbourne charity walk I asked him which batsman Sehwag remind him of to which Jones replied ldquoObviously there is a bit of Sachin Tendulkar in there but Sehwag is much like Adam Gilchrist He has a bit of luck is carefree hits the ball in the air and makes mistakesrdquoAnother deceased famous name to witness Sehwagrsquos gem was Peter Roebuck the doyen of cricket writers In the next dayrsquos Sydney Morning Herald Roebuck wrote ldquoAt the crease he has a gleam in his eye suggesting that reason plays but a small part in his approach Repeatedly partners marched down the wicket to urge restraint from a man whose entire career has been an adventure Sehwag listened quietly to their entreaties smiled sweetly blocked a couple of balls and generally tried to strike the next one into Richmond StationrdquoTowards the end of the day when a double hundred was there for the taking Sehwag tried to clout another of Simon Katichrsquos full tosses only to hole out to Bracken in the deepDespite the loss of both openers Rahul Dravid and Sachin Tendulkar India were still in a position of strength at 329 for 4 But astonishingly only 37 were added before the last wicket fell Ricky Pontingrsquos second double century of the series formed the bulk of Australiarsquos first innings score of 558 to which India replied by managing 286 with Sehwag scoring just 11 Australia reached their 95run target with the loss of only one wicket and by 1239 pm on Day Five a Test that promised so much for India ended in an utterly disappointing loss Ponting claimed the manofthematch award for his 257 but Irsquod like to think Sehwag outscored him in terms of entertainmentLike Sehwag asked at the press conference after Day One ldquoHow many players get 195 against Australia How many openers have scored 195 on the opening dayrdquo The simple answer is lsquonot manyrsquo and that is why Sehwag and his punchy Boxing Day 2003 knock will stay special for years to comemiddayrsquos group sports editor Clayton Murzello is a purist with an open stance He tweets ClaytonMurzelloSend your feedback to mailbagmiddaycomThe views expressed in this column are the individualrsquos and donrsquot represent those of the paper