309 in graphic detail
A graphical analysis of Virender Sehwag's unbeaten 309
28-Mar-2008
On the third day of the first Test against South Africa in Chennai, Virender Sehwag scored his second triple-hundred, the fastest ever. These graphics analyse his unbeaten innings.
More than half of Sehwag's runs came on the off side, perhaps an indication that the South African bowlers generally stuck to a line around the off stump. They did stray in their length though - 83 of Sehwag's 185 runs on the off side came behind square.
Sehwag was at ease against all the bowlers, with only Morne Morkel and Paul Harris conceding less than a run-a-ball against him. He was particularly harsh on Makhaya Ntini and Jacques Kallis. He scored exactly an 100 against the left-arm spin of Paul Harris, against whom he pulled off quite a few reverse-sweeps.
Sehwag dominated India's batting, outscoring his partners by a 2:1 ratio in the two double-century stands. Opening with Jaffer, Sehwag made 134 out of 213, while Jaffer managed 73. Rahul Dravid and Sehwag were surely in different gears; Dravid could only score 65 off 181 deliveries while Sehwag plundered 175 off 140. The only measure in which Dravid matched Sehwag was in terms of dot balls - Dravid didn't score off 145 deliveries, the same for Sehwag was 152. Jaffer wasn't far behind, with 127 dot balls.
Sehwag's strike-rate, shown here in 25-run slots, had ups and downs. His first hundred came off 116 deliveries, and his innings took off after the 125-run mark, and he rushed from 175 to 200 in just eight balls, a strike-rate of over 300. He motored at a strike-rate of 150 from 200 to 250, and even at the end, after a full day in the Chennai heat, he managed nearly a run a ball.