&imwidth=800&imheight=600&format=webp&quality=medium "Sehwag reveals how Sachin saved his ODI career after MS Dhoni dropped India opener in 2008")
Former India opener Virender Sehwag has revealed shocking details on contemplating ODI retirement long before he actually did. During the infamous 2007/08 tri-series Down Under, involving Australia and Sri Lanka, the then-Indian captain MS Dhoni made some tough calls, including rotating and dropping star openers - Sehwag and Sachin from the playing XI after the first few games, which led to speculations of growing unrest within the Indian dressing room. Although that episode keeps popping up over the years, Sehwag revealed the repercussions of it, which, at one point, made him consider his ODI retirement, only for Sachin Tendulkar’s advice to do a U-turn on that.
Sehwag was like none India has ever had. The most flamboyant opener the game has seen was a megastar in 2008 when India toured Australia for a long tour. Despite that, Dhoni benched him over fitness and form issues, and Sehwag did not play any part in that series afterwards.
Speaking on Padamjeet Sehrawat's podcast, Sehwag revealed his thought process after MS dropped him from the playing XI, and how, by just approaching Sachin on this, he could revive his ODI career.
“In the 2007-08 series against Australia, I played the first three matches and then MS Dhoni dropped me from the side. I wasn't picked for a while after that. Then I felt that if I can't be a part of the playing XI, then there is no point in playing ODI cricket,” Sehwag revealed during the chat.
“I went to Tendulkar and said, ‘I am thinking of retiring from ODIs'. He said, ‘No. I went through a similar phase in 1999-2000, where I felt I should leave cricket. But that phase came and went. You are going through a trough, but it will pass. Don't make any decision when you are emotional. Give yourself some time and 1-2 series, and then take a call,” Sehwag recalled.
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Meanwhile, Sehwag's decision to U-turn on his ODI retirement plans paid dividends, as he led the batting during the home WC a few years later, helping India win the edition after 28 years. Sehwag scored a hundred in the first game of that edition against Bangladesh, completing 380 runs in eight contested matches at an average close to 50.
A year later, he broke the record for most runs in an ODI innings during a match against West Indies in Indore, hitting 219.
