I think, I got it too late: Sehwag on his induction in ICC's 'Hall of Fame'
Mumbai, Nov 14: Known for his straight-faced humour, former India opener Virender Sehwag on Tuesday said that his induction into the ICC's 'Hall of Fame' has happened "too late".
Sehwag along with former Indian women's team skipper Diana Edulji and Sri Lankan legend Aravinda de Silva were made members of ICC Hall of Fame for their stellar achievements during their playing career.
"I think, I am too late," quipped Sehwag when former West Indies bowler Ian Bishop asked him about his thoughts to be part of the ICC Hall Of Fame.
One of the most destructive batters of the modern era, Sehwag donned India colours between 1999 and 2013. He scored a total of 23 Test centuries during his illustrious career -- the fifth most by an India men's player.
His highest score of 319 against South Africa in Chennai in 2008 the best of any Indian player ever.
During his conversation with Bishop, Sehwag touched upon a number of milestones of his career, including his first ODI match, his first Test match, his promotion from middle-order to opening the innings in both ODIs and Test cricket.
Sehwag, who accumulated 8,586 runs from 104 Tests at an average of 49.34 and also took 40 wickets during his Test career which spanned from 2001-2013, revealed the role of Zaheer Khan in his promotion as an opener.
"Everybody thinks it was Sourav Ganguly that thought of making him open the innings but it was Zaheer (Khan), who came up with that suggestion first. He told Ganguly to make me open the innings," said Sehwag.
The 45-year-old totalled 8,273 runs for India in 50-over cricket at an average of 35.05 and his 219 against the West Indies in Indore in 2011 remains the third-highest score achieved by a male cricketer in ODI.
Sehwag said he always believed in the philosophy of "see the ball, hit the ball".
"I was not somebody who believes in watch the ball, play the ball. There were players like Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid, VVS Laxman, all legends who were doing that. So, I had to be different from them and that is also the reason why I never thought of changing my style of play."
Talking about being dropped from the side around 2007, Sehwag said: "Here was a guy who has scored a triple hundred, was sitting at home and watching it on TV players scoring 30-40 runs in the match. I missed 10-11 matches. I have to thank Anil Kumble for bringing me back into the team."
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Air India Express flight from Bengaluru to Kochi makes emergency landing
Bengaluru(PTI): An Air India Express flight from Bengaluru to Kochi made an emergency landing at Bengaluru after a fire was noticed in one of the engines, the Bangalore International Airport Limited said on Sunday.
All the passengers and crew were evacuated and no one was injured, Air India Express said in a statement. According to sources, the fire was noticed minutes after the take off.
The crew members alerted the Air Traffic Controller and a full scale emergency was declared.
Soon after emergency landing at the Kempegowda International Airport (KIA) in Bengaluru, the fire was extinguished.
"On May 18, 2024, IX 1132 from Bengaluru to Kochi made an emergency landing at BLR Airport at 2312 hrs, due to a reported fire in one of the engines," a spokesperson of the BIAL, which manages KIA, said in a statement.
A full-scale emergency was declared, and the fire was promptly extinguished upon landing. All 179 passengers and six crew members have been successfully evacuated from the aircraft, the Bangalore International Airport Limited (BIAL) spokesperson said.
An Air India Express spokesperson said that due to suspected flames from the right engine after takeoff, the Bengaluru- Kochi flight 'elected' to return and carried out a precautionary landing at Bengaluru . The ground services also reported flames, resulting in an evacuation.
"The crew accomplished an evacuation with no injuries to any guests. We regret the inconvenience this has caused and are working to provide alternative arrangements for our guests to reach their destination as soon as possible," it said.
"A thorough investigation with the regulator shall be accomplished to establish the cause,” it said.
