Today, March 29 is a very special day for the Indian fans, especially in the Test format. It was on this day, when Virender Sehwag, the amazingly aggressive Indian opener, became the first Indian to hit a triple century in Test cricket, in 2004, against Pakistan.
It was the first Test between the two sides since 1989 and was played in Multan. Rahul Dravid won the toss and chose to bat and Sehwag and Tendulkar went on to keep the Pakistani bowlers on the field for two days. The duo added 336 runs for the third wicket to the joy of Indian fans all over the world.
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Sehwag was in his own world, smashing the likes of Shoaib Akhtar, Mohammad Sami, Shabbir Ahmed, Saqlain Mushtaq, and Abdul Razzaq. He became only the second Indian to score a double ton against Pakistan and broke Sanjay Manjrekar’s record of 217 and then went onto reach his triple ton with a six. His triple ton came in 364 balls with 38 fours and 6 sixes. He finally got out for 309 runs, as India went onto beat Pakistan by an innings and 52 runs.
Virender Sehwag- 309 vs Pakistan, Multan, 2004
Four years after this feat, in 2008, India met South Africa in Chennai for the first Test. This time South Africa batted first and made 540 runs with Hashim Amla making 159. India knew that they had to make a big score to put Proteas under pressure and that’s where Sehwag came into the picture.
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Virender Sehwag went onto make his second Test triple hundred on the third day of the Test match. He nullified a good attack consisting of Dale Steyn, Morne Morkel, Paul Harris, and Makhaya Ntini. He bettered his own score of 309 and made 319 runs in 304 balls, reaching his triple ton in just 278 balls, which to this day, remains the fastest triple century in Test matches. This is also the highest Test score by an Indian batsman so far.
He hit 42 fours and 5 sixes in his innings and joined an elite list of batsmen with two triple tons. Only Don Bradman (Australia), Brian Lara (West Indies), and Chris Gayle (West Indies) are the other batsmen to achieve this feat in Tests.
Virender Sehwag- 319 vs South Africa, Chennai, 2008
