Year 2010 was Very Very Special!

2010 was perhaps the best year for Indian cricket in a long time. Perhaps only one that can match it was 1971, when India won two overseas series for the first time against powerful cricket nations, WI and England; not counting 1983 when India became world champions in One day cricket against the run of the play. In spite of Tendulkar, the Ram, being so dominant in Indian cricket, to me 2010 was the year of (VVS) Laxman. Five superlative innings that not only saved India but converted defeats into victories and changed the fate of every series. Review the following games and you will find VVS as the common denominator; the pillar of strength.

1. SA vs India in India
2. India vs Sri Lanka in SL
3. Australia vs India in India
4. New Zealand vs India in India
5. India vs SA in SA

And the last one against South Africa will be remembered for a very very long time. Indeed a water-shed moment in Indian cricket as it helped India to level the series for the first time in South Africa. Laxman was all grace and attack; standing up to the ferocity of Steyn and Morkel while scoring the only 50 of the match as if he was batting on a completely different track to any one else in that game. Didn't surprise may of us though, did it? The man has done it before; quite a few times. Indeed India now EXPECTS him to do so when every one else fails. What a psychological edge to have for the Indian team when the push comes to shove.

Lot has been written about this one of the finest batsman in the history of cricket. Very Very Special, Silky Steel and what not. And no one has missed a chance to wax lyrical about him; Bhogle to blogger and all in between. VVS Laxman is one of the few batsman who can unite all in consensus about his art, regardless of national boundaries. And when it comes to one country, he just turns from great to a colossus. No prizes for guessing that Australia's love-hate relationship with Laxman is one of the most enduring and endearing one. Many in Australia do not know whether to love him or hate him. Many love to hate him when he bats but hate to see him get out. The identity of a true champion is that even your enemy wants to embrace you....after loosing. I would like to think that out of all recent players the three who got the most respect from Aussie crowd were Tendulkar, Lara and Laxman. We know his name VVS Laxman stands for Vangipurappu Venkata Sai Laxman. It could very well be Vengipurappu Venkata Sachin Laxman, because when it comes to Australia, he can be double the Sachin. And I am sure, Tendulkar will take no offense at that.

For long, Laxman has been indisputably the best Indian batsman for 2nd innings as well as the fourth of the test match. What a gem of an innings he played on Tuesday, 4th of October against Aussies. While Ishant Sharma was a very ably ally in the rescue act that turned triumphant, Laxman's presence at the other end must have been like a balm on a burn. The confidence with which Laxman let Ishant face more deliveries in a partnership than he did, must have encouraged the young man to repay the faith. Bit of Steve Waugh in that Laxman. He read the situation very well and scored off every possible opportunity. Now that is not very hard for an immensely gifted artist like him but often many celebrated players have been known to opt for caution over aggression and give the impetus back to the opponent. To his credit, Laxman did not allow any Australian bowler to settle, let alone dictate.  50 of 48 balls and eventual 73 n.o. of 79 balls. He had to waste more than 6 balls in farming the strike after Ishant was given out, meaning he played at a rate of well over run a ball! There in lies the genius of the man. On 7 August 2010, he played yet another master class; he is almost making a habit of doing that now. On a turning track rampaging Sri Lankan spinners discovered what Australians know for over a decade that this man turns into a superman when his team is thrown a gauntlet. From that point he is quite un-Indian batsman. Australians love him perhaps because of this typical "खडूस" (khadoos) Australianness.. But he is not just an axeman like a Hayden or a bloody minded never-say-die Steve Waugh. He combines the steel of a Waugh, stroke-play of a Ponting and dominating verve of a Hayden. And all without looking violent. His blade is like a Ninja's katana. The victim does not know when the cut was made till it is all too late and indeed, dies admiring. Laxman has played many symphonies for his team, the best being the great 281 on Eaden Gardens against his arch rivals, the Aussies. But this last one will be remembered equally fondly since it was a very similar fight from the death-bed; lost hope turned to triumph; रुदन से रम्बा......Probably the new age axiom in cricket is that the game is never over till Lax(st)man is out!! Aussies and South Africans will agree most emphatically.

Laxman saves his best for the worst situation. In that he is similar to another immensely gifted Aussie, Mark "Junior" Waugh. Both displayed the same characteristics; their levels of concentration, artistry and dominance were directly proportional to the skill, challenge and degree of difficulty their opponents presented. That is why, both these  batsmen are remarkably similar in stats. Junior scored over 8000 runs with 20 tons at an average slightly over 41. Mere look at the  cold statistics reveal as much as they hide. It appears as if both these artists under-performed. With the gift of supple wrists and a hawk-eye for picking up the length quickly, they could have scored lot more international runs than they have. Since they are immensely talented, scoring runs against any attack in any condition comes easily to them. But artists get bored very quickly; and easy task may soon become uninspiring resulting in loss in concentration and wicket. A workman like player, a technical perfectionist (and who could be better than G. Boycott ?) will strive to score runs every time he goes out to bat. For a pro like Sunny Gavaskar it does not matter who the opponent is; since he has no eye, time or mind for the bowler; he sees only the ball. However an artist thrives on inspiration, responds to a challenge; like a cry from his team mates to wake him up from the slumber and do what is expected. And usually it is done so easily as if saying, "silly, what did you wake me up for?". Result is not the only bonus when they bat; every run scored is dipped in delight. When you analyse their performance in critical moments of a game, they attain a colossus status. That describes the magic of both VVS and Junior. That is what their stats hide. These two guys are special, "पैसा वसूल" (Paisa vasool) players.

I believe that Laxman as d'Artagnan compliments the three musketeers of modern Indian cricket: Tendulkar, Dravid and Ganguly. They along with Kumble, Harbhajan, Zaheer Khan and Dhoni have been responsible for taking India to the pinnacle of test cricket. Recently Laxman was given a Padma Shri Award by Indian government. He is certainly a "Padma" (lotus) of Indian cricket. I believe even a "Bharat Ratna" award would be most fitting recognition for this humble student of the game. As the name of the award suggests, he is truly an "Indian Gem". It is the exploits of such gems like VVS and Tendulkar that gives meaning to the much-loved slogan "India Shining!"

Listed below are some of the finest innings played by VVS; gems in the history of Indian cricket. If you get a chance to watch them, don't miss. Guaranteed to make anyone forget the national boundaries and nationalistic fervor.

• In his debut test against SA in Ahmedabad, he made a crucial 51 in second innings out of 191; top score  that helped India win the low scoring test. He showed this ability to bat with the lower order that early in his career. Since then, he has been the best Indian batsman to play with lower order batsmen and score runs in the fourth innings.
• His first test hundred came in  Sydney test of the new millennium in Jan 2000. It was one of the finest innings in a hopelessly lost cause; a scintillating second innings 167 out of a team total of 261; a whopping 64% of the total. Even though, Aussies had given Indians a drubbing, at the end of that test they appeared dazed by the brilliance of Laxman's fightback; an innings scored  at a strike rate of 83, while wickets were tumbling all around him. Certainly Aussies got a glimpse of things to come. Laxman has lived up to that image of Aussie Tormentor ever since. I was indeed lucky to watch that innings on SCG.
• Classified as one of the best ever in the history of test cricket by Cricinfo, his colossus 281 against Aussies at Eden Gardens in March 2001, completely changed not only the course of the game but series. India became a force to reckon with after this series and haven't looked back since.
• India V Australia, 4th test of 2004 series at Wankhede stadium produced another amazing contest between these arch rivals. On a raging turner, the game didn't last even 3 full days. With wicket at its treacherous best, who else but Laxman scored the most emphatic innings of 69 in the third innings of the test match. Batting at no. 3, he was the main batsman in two match wining partnerships; 91 with Tendulkar and 48 with Dravid. The value of his innings can be judged from the fact that later on the same day, whole Australian side got dismissed for 93 chasing 103 for a win!
• On 2006 tour of SA, Indians drew blood in the first test wining their first ever test on SA soil. While Sreesanth was undoubtedly the hero of this test, Laxman came to the rescue, as usual, in the second innings. With India tottering at 4/61 with Tendulkar, Dravid and Sehwag all in the hut, Laxman resurrected Indian innings with a superb 73, to put the lead beyond SA batsmen. In this innings he again showed his ability to bat with the tail.
• March 2009, another superlative second innings unbeaten 124 against Kiwis at Napier. India after wining the first test, were made to follow on and in dire straits at 3/260 still the deficit not wiped out. He played in two crucial partnerships with Gambhir and Yuvraj, nursing both junior players and took India to safety and series win in NZ after a long time.

Add 2010's five superlative innings to the above and you get a resume that is hard to equal for the best of the best; 143 not out against SA at Eden Gardens, 103 not out against Sri Lanka, 73 not out against Australia, 91 against NZ and finally, 96 against SA. He has given immense joy to the cricket fans regardless of the nationalities, since his runs have mostly come when his team needed them most; often he was the last man standing.

Salaam to the most humble servant of Indian cricket!