By Vipul Kashyap
Sharjah [UAE], January 27 : Pakistan's legendary spinner Saqlain Mushtaq recalled his encounters with India's star batter Virender Sehwag back in 2004, saying he faced him only twice, including the Multan Test, where Sehwag scored 309.
Mushtaq revealed he had suffered a shoulder injury and knee pain during the match, but still bowled, as Pakistan did not have any replacements.
Sehwag, on various platforms, said he told his batting partner on the other end that he would smash Saqlain Mushtaq for a six whenever Saqlain bowled.
Saqlain believes Sehwag made TRP out of saying he'd smash Mushtaq for a six whenever he bowls. Sehwag slammed 309 off 375 balls, including 35 fours and 6 sixes.
In an exclusive interview with ANI, Saqlain Mushtaq said, "Obviously, if he performed well, he'll say he doesn't consider spinners as bowlers. Unfortunately, he only played against me twice. I'm not making excuses, but in Multan, my shoulder was injured when he scored 300."
"I was hospitalised the whole time, couldn't lift my hands, and had knee pain. But we didn't have another spinner, so Inzamam-ul-Haq asked me to bowl. That was my last match. I didn't get another chance to bowl to Sehwag. Despite the injury, I kept bowling straight at him. The wicket was flat, but I never said that. He made TRP out of it, saying he'd smash Mushtaq for a six when he comes to bowl," Mushtaq added.
With this innings, Sehwag became the first Indian cricketer to have scored a triple hundred in Tests. What made his knock even more special was that Sehwag had smashed a massive six in Mushtaq's over, when he was batting on 295 to go past 300.
Sehwag's outstanding innings led India to a win by an innings and 52 runs. Apart from Sehwag, Tendulkar also made a brilliant 194*, but he missed out on a well-deserved double hundred as India declared their innings on 675/5.