You always did ulta of what I told you: Sachin Tendulkar's unique birthday greeting to Virender Sehwag

(Photo Credit: Sachin Tendulkar/Twitter)

New Delhi: An unchararcteristically cheeky Sachin Tendulkar wished Virender Sehwag on his 39th birthday in the most unique way possible, sending a tweet to his former opening partner with an upside-down message to signify that Viru always did 'ulta' (opposite) to what he advised him on the field. 

"happy birthday, viru! have a great start to the new year. you've always done ulta of what i have told you on the field. so here's one from me," Sachin tweeted. 

But to read the tweet, one has to turn the screen upside down. 

.ǝɯ ɯoɹɟ ǝuo s,ǝɹǝɥ os ˙pןǝıɟ uo noʎ pןoʇ ǝʌɐɥ ı ʇɐɥʍ ɟo ɐʇןn ǝuop sʎɐʍןɐ ǝʌ,noʎ ˙ɹɐǝʎ ʍǝu ǝɥʇ oʇ ʇɹɐʇs ʇɐǝɹƃ ɐ ǝʌɐɥ ¡nɹıʌ 'ʎɐpɥʇɹıq ʎddɐɥ pic.twitter.com/L1XTzhzoiU — sachin tendulkar (@sachin_rt) October 20, 2017

But Sehwag was not to be left behind and replied in his own unique way.

"Uparwala sab dekh raha hai, yeh to suna tha, par aaj samajh aaya, woh neeche waalon ke liye likhta kaise hai ! (I always knew God keeps a watch on us from up there but today I came to know the way He writes about us)," Sehwag replied to Tendulkar's tweet.

Thank you God ji Uparwala sab dekh raha hai, yeh to suna tha, par aaj samajh aaya, woh neeche waalon ke liye likhta kaise hai ! https://t.co/stdodewNuJ — Virender Sehwag (@virendersehwag) October 20, 2017

Before retiring in October 2015, Sehwag played 103 Tests for India and scored 8,586 runs with 23 hundreds, 32 fifties at an average of 49.34. But what stood out during his entire career was how aggressively he approached opening in Test cricket, which was considered unconventional until that time. 

Sehwag scored his Test runs at a strike rate of 82.33, while his 8273 ODI runs in 251 matches came at a strike rate of 104.33. He racked up 15 ODI hundreds and 38 half-centuries.

The 'Nawab of Najafgarh' also played 19 T20Is, scoring 394 runs with two fifties.