A Very Very Special Birthday to a wristy genius - VVS Laxman, the batter who defined a unique style in Indian cricket

Hyderabad: Vangipurapu Venkata Sai Laxman, more commonly known as VVS Laxman to the cricketing world, celebrates his 50th birthday on November 1, 2024 – a landmark birthday. However, for the right handed batter, who redefined Indian cricket with his unique style and batting prowess, crossing landmarks has always been a piece of cake.

Laxman, who was India’s Man Friday many a time, found a way to wriggle the team out of tough situations, more often than not, batting with the lower order. With his wristy elegance, flowing drives, menacing cuts and hooks, Laxman’s armoury had it all to counter the best of bowlers.

The Hyderabad-based cricketer was not the genius that Sachin Tendulkar was called, he wasn’t the swashbuckling Virender Sehwag, he wasn’t the ever-reliable Rahul Dravid, but he was a gentle mix of all the above, offering Indian cricket a Very Very Special contribution every time he went out to bat.

One shouldn’t put statistics and Laxman on the same page. The exuberant 167 against Australia in Sydney as an opener gave a glimpse of what the man from the land of ML Jaisimha and Mohammed Azharuddin could do.

Although India lost the Sydney Test by an innings, Laxman’s crafty knock, that found the gaps in the Australian field with surgical precision, gave him a pedestal to showcase more brilliance.

A season later, Laxman, in the company of Dravid did the unthinkable. The masterly 281 at the Eden Gardens, keeping the likes of Glenn McGrath, Jason Gillespie, Shane Warne and Michael Kasprowicz at bay, sent Laxman to the pinnacle of Indian cricket’s folklore. Following on, the Indian batters – mainly Laxman and Dravid – beat Australia to help India snatch a win from the jaws of defeat.

He continued his love affair with Eden Gardens, adding 214 runs with Sachin Tendulkar, helping India wipe out a deficit against West Indies and help India safely draw the match.

Australia continued to be Laxman’s favourite opposition. His knocks at Adelaide (148), where he stitched a match-saving 300 runs partnership with Dravid, and his 178 in Sydney in the company of Tendulkar, who himself scored an unbeaten 241, his unbeaten 73 – battling back spasms – and motoring along with Ishant Sharma and last batter Pragyan Ojha helping India to a win in Mohali are all some of Laxman’s mastery work.

He scored more than 8,000 Test runs in 134 matches at an average of just over 45. His 17 centuries and 56 half centuries have been instrumental in helping India win or save a Test match. In 86 ODIs, he scored 2,338 runs.

What sets Laxman apart is his craftsmanship. He was an artist, his wristy shots on the leg side – especially guiding a ball that was bowled well outside his off-stump through the mid-wicket area – is something that inspired a generation of cricket lovers.

His ability to farm and rotate the strike, especially in tougher fourth-innings conditions, mostly batting with the tail, meant he was one of India’s most unselfish batters.

An instrumental player in India’s Border-Gavaskar Test series win, he scored his second Test match double century, an innings that was laden with artistry, elegance and poise.

The soon to be 50-year-old did have his chinks in his armour. His ability to play the moving ball combined with pace, especially in English conditions, was questionable. In ODIs, his sloppy fielding combined with slow running between the wickets, meant he was a liability in the team.

Drawing a blank in the century column in England, missing out on a spot in India’s 2003 ODI World Cup squad, where India reached the final, are some of the setbacks Laxman would not want to look at. Or maybe look at and wonder at the saying – no one is perfect.

Numbers – his six ODI centuries and 10 half-centuries – would never do justice to the smiling Hyderabad assassin but what Laxman has done with his craftsmanship has been etched in the annals of Indian cricketing history.

Laxman continues to be a role model for many Indians. His stints as the head of the National Cricket Academy, as the interim coach of the Indian cricket team, gives him a chance to imbibe his teamman spirit to many budding cricketers.

The ever-smiling Hyderabadi, who was always ready to stand up, be counted and deliver whenever the Indian team needed him, is the right person to impart a fraction of his geniusness to the next generation, which he is doing with utmost grace and humility.