Sehwag determined to make his bat do the talking at pyjama party

For one reason or another Virender Sehwag has had a turbulent start to his career. He may only have been on the international scene for a very short time but already he has experienced some of the highs and plenty of the lows of the game and, in so doing, made many headlines.

Understandably, the 23-year-old from Delhi has no desire to dwell on a recent past that is crammed with controversy. "I don't want to talk about that," he said as the Indians continued their preparations for the forthcoming NatWest Triangular Series.

Yet the facts need to be told, because to have come through what Sehwag has had to endure in the last few months is an indication of just how mentally strong he is.

The most notorious moment, which threatened to become an international incident between India and England, came during the second Test against South Africa in Port Elizabeth late last year. Sehwag, known as Veeru, was one of half a dozen Indian players to fall foul of the match referee, Mike Denness, the former England captain, during the game.

While Sachin Tendulkar, Sehwag's hero and role model, was found guilty of ball tampering and India's captain, Sourav Ganguly, was fined and given a suspended ban for failing to control his team, the enthusiastic Sehwag, playing in only his second Test match, was one of four players to be deemed guilty of excessive appealing.

The punishments, which included a one-match ban for Sehwag, provoked an angry reaction from India and culminated in Denness being "sacked" by the United Cricket Board of South Africa as referee for the third Test.

It was an unhappy end to Sehwag's first international tour, one which had got off to a dream start. He marked his Test debut with a century in the first innings of the opening test in Bloemfontein, joining an élite band of batsmen to have achieved the feat, including Mohammad Azharuddin, Ganguly, W G Grace, Gordon Greenidge, Mark Waugh and Salim Malik.

Worse was to follow. Because the final Test of the South African rubber was declared unofficial, Sehwag had technically not served his suspension. A major impasse developed when he was included in the squad for the first game against England. "No Sehwag, no series," was the message from the Indians after the tourists protested and the series only proceeded when, after much wrangling between the Indian Board and the ICC, Sehwag was finally not selected for the team to face England in Mohali.

An injury to his left shoulder then ruled the powerfully built batsman out of the recent tour of Caribbean, so he will be hoping for a change of fortune now he is in England. What is beyond doubt is that Sehwag, with five Tests and 31 one-day internationals behind him, has a great future ahead of him. One Indian commentator has even said: "If Sachin Tendulkar is the new Bradman, then Sehwag is the new Tendulkar."

Considering his background, Sehwag is even more of a marvel. "No one in my family plays cricket," he admitted. "I learned about the game initially from the television. I watched every match they showed."

School and club cricket followed and his skills were honed to such a pitch that his feats with the bat, such as the 188 he scored against Punjab in an innings that included 10 sixes, and his score of 274 against South Zone, have earned him the sobriquet "The Butcher of Delhi".

While that implies something of an impetuous player, Sehwag denies this. "My natural game is to attack. That does not mean that I am attacking every ball, but I try to play positively. Everybody is telling me to play down the ground," he added. "If I do that, they say, I will start to play longer innings by taking minimum risks. So I want to discipline myself to do this."

What cannot be disputed, despite his tendency to loft the ball when hitting through the 'V', is that Sehwag hits the ball very hard. Indeed, his square drives are already rated more crunching than Tendulkar's. Greater discipline would also help him claim a more permanent Test place. Ultimately, were he to become a regular, Sehwag has his eye on batting at four or five, positions presently held by Tendulkar and his captain, Ganguly. That means biding his time for now. "I will bat anywhere the selectors and captain want me to," he says.

At the moment that is at six, where he and Vangipurappu Laxman are the main contenders when the Test series begins. Sehwag knows that to beat his rival he needs some good performances in the one-day series, where his role generally has been that of an opener. "I like batting over here, conditions are good," he said after hitting a brisk 26 against Sussex and following that up with a more belligerent 45 against Kent. "And I like the crowds, there is good support for us here. Of course the English attack is a good one and they will be difficult to play in England where the ball will moving around a little bit.

"I think it will a close Test series and an exciting one day tournament." Sehwag promises to be an exciting addition to the cricket world.