Sourav Ganguly's funny story batting with Virender Sehwag in 2002 Natwest final: Watch

Former Indian cricketer Sourav Ganguly is widely regarded as one of the greatest Indian captains of all time. Under his leadership, India won the Natwest 2002 final against England on July 13, 2002. Apparently, the current Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) President is also an ardent storyteller as evidenced from his various talk show appearances and interviews. To commemorate the occasion of India’s Natwest 2002 final win anniversary, here is a look back at the time when the then captain Sourav Ganguly narrated a story about his batting partner Virender Sehwag during India’s run chase.

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Natwest 2002 final: Sourav Ganguly talks about a ‘relaxed’ Virender Sehwag

In July 2018, Sourav Ganguly interacted with Gaurav Kapur on the Oaktree Sports’ show Breakfast with Champions. During the interaction, the former Indian skipper talked about Virender Sehwag’s carefree mindset during India’s high-octane run-chase against England in the Natwest 2002 final match at Lord’s. According to Sourav Ganguly, Virender Sehwag was “whistling” when the two openers were walking out to the middle after the innings break.

The 113-Test veteran also revealed that Sehwag confidently assured him about an Indian victory even before the run chase began. The two batsmen then got India off to a flying start with a flurry of boundaries, forming a 106-run opening stand in less than 15 overs. Sourav Ganguly then narrated the instructions he gave to Virender Sehwag when the right-hander was about to face former England medium-pacer Ronnie Irani in an over. According to Ganguly, he told the destructive batsman to take a cautious approach as scoring 7-8 runs in an over will be enough for the team.

In his carefree approach, Virender Sehwag ignored his captain’s advice and stroked four back-to-back boundaries. Sourav Ganguly further laughingly told Gaurav Kapur that he had left his opening partner to his own since he “never listens to anyone”. However, he jokingly told Sehwag that if he got out cheaply, he would 'see him later at the hotel'.

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England piled up 325-5 in their 50 overs while batting first. Both Sourav Ganguly (60 off 43 balls) and Virender Sehwag (45 off 49 balls) provided India with a blazing start at the top of the order. Their dismissals triggered a batting collapse as the ‘Men in Blue’ were reduced to 146-5 at one stage. After Sachin Tendulkar’s early departure, then youngsters Mohammad Kaif and Yuvraj Singh scored sparkling half-centuries to guide India to an incredible run chase.

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Image credit: Sourav Ganguly’s screenshot from Oaktree Sports YouTube channel