Virender Sehwag shares interesting anecdote from 2011 WC final, involving Sachin Tendulkar

Former India batter Virender Sehwag has shared an interesting anecdote from the 2011 ICC World Cup final against Sri Lanka in Wankhede, where he had a chat with his opening partner, Sachin Tendulkar and thought that it was a terrific wicket while fielding.

Sri Lanka batted first and scored 274 runs, with Mahela Jayawardene scoring a century during the innings. Then, the legendary opening duo of Sachin and Sehwag came to the crease, but Lasith Malinga dismissed both early.

"I'll tell you a story about the 2011 World Cup final. Sachin was standing at midwicket, and I was standing at deep square leg. As the sun was setting, we noticed a lot of shine on the wicket. So both of us looked at it, then looked at each other and signalled that it would be fun to bat on this wicket. But, unfortunately, neither of us scored runs," Sehwag said during a panel discussion by cricket experts on Cricbuzz while talking about Virat Kohli's lean patch. 

"So all the discussions that there's heat, the wicket is flat, you win the toss and choose to bat… if you are in that patch where you can't score runs, you won't score runs. It's as simple as that," Sehwag added. 

After losing two early wickets, Gautam Gambhir (97) and Virat Kohli (35) put on an exemplary 83-run partnership which steered India out of trouble. Indian skipper MS Dhoni promoted himself ahead of Yuvraj Singh, scored an unbeaten 91 runs, and finished the innings with six, taking India to their second ODI World Cup title after 28 years.

Further, Sehwag believes India can try impressive fast bowlers in the ongoing season of Indian Premier League (IPL), given the T20 World Cup in Australia, scheduled later this year. He mentioned the names of three pacers who have made a significant impact in these games so far.

"You are talking about the T20 World Cup, I would say he should get a chance in the next series against South Africa in June. You'll know how he bowls against an international team, and he'll get some experience too. You can give your main bowlers a break because there are T20s in England as well. Those who have performed in the IPL can be picked for the home series… Umran Malik, Arshdeep, and Avesh Khan can be tried," Sehwag concluded.