"Once fast bowlers are angry, you can use their pace" - Virender Sehwag on his encounters with pacers like Shoaib Akhtar

Former Indian opener Virender Sehwag has opened up on how he used to sledge fast bowlers to get an edge over them while facing off in matches. There have been a number of anecdotes made public about how Sehwag used to rile up bowlers like Shoaib Akhtar whenever they went up against each other.

Sehwag spoke about playing on the ego of the fast bowler and forcing them to make a mistake, thereby taking away the wicket-taking opportunity.

Speaking to Sanjay Manjrekar on JioCinema, here's what Virender Sehwag had to say about his tactics against pacers (8:20):

"If you have to rile up the bowler then it's not necessary that you have to abuse him. You can also taunt them in a way that then they don't look to get you out. They just try to injure you.

"If you get hit by a ball, you will not be out. So once they are angry, you can use their pace. So I used to use these techniques."

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Virender Sehwag on his mindset while facing the pacers

Virender Sehwag agreed that he used to feel a bit cautious while playing the extreme pace of the likes of Shoaib Akhtar and Brett Lee. However, he also added that he knew he could get boundaries easily if they missed their line and length.

On this, he stated (9:25):

"Shoaib Akhtar had so much pace on his deliveries that I knew that even if I could hit it on either side of the fielders, I was guaranteed a boundary. So these fast bowlers like Shoaib, Brett Lee, etc were often like a guarantee of boundaries for me.

"Yes you were a bit scared of getting hurt by the ball, but you also knew you could get boundaries if they bowl full toss or a bit short."

Sehwag and Akhtar continue to remain great friends off the field despite their fiery encounters on it.