New Delhi, Mar 29: A mother's desire and a cricket crazy nation's prayers were answered on Monday when Virender Sehwag hit a six to cross the 300-run mark, becoming the first Indian cricketer to do so and claiming the highest score by an Indian.
As the Indian dressing room in Multan celebrated the achievement, back home in the cramped and crowded lanes of Najafgarh in southwest Delhi - the neighbourhood where the Sehwag family lives - people milled around his home in hundreds to congratulate his proud parents.

After scoring an unbeaten 228 at close of play Sunday, Sehwag's mother Krishna Sehwag had wished that her son go on to score a triple century.

And score that triple ton he did, in some style!

Sehwag launched one of Saqlain Mushtaq's sharply turning balls into orbit, crossing the 300-run mark in the process.

In the middle-class neighbourhood of Najafgarh, the number of congratulatory telephone calls and visitors at the Sehwag residence kept increasing with every run the stocky opening batsman accumulated.

Apart from the neighbours, the gathering at the Sehwag residence included several reporters and television crews waiting to interview the batsman's parents.

Neighbours were seen distributing sweets to visitors in the sheer joy of a local boy having done them proud.

His accomplishment was equally appreciated among the cricketing circles.

"For a middle-order batsman, Sehwag has shown great adapting abilities at the opener's slot," former Indian spinner Maninder Singh told IANS.
"The way he dominated the Pakistani bowlers, who are some of the best seamers in world cricket today, was the highlight of his innings."

However, when Sehwag's long vigil ended at 309 a sudden silence descended on the streets of Najafgarh. Krishna Sehwag, who has unending confidence in her son's batting prowess, said she was happy her son scored a triple century but ideally she would have wanted him to stick around for some more time. Bureau Report