After Ben Stokes and Company defeated Pakistan in a match that set a new record on the opening day in Rawalpindi, the former captain of England paid special attention to Virender Sehwag in his massive statement. Let’s be truthful. Fans of Team India were reminded of Virender Sehwag and Rahul Dravid’s batting vigils against Pakistan in the early 2000s by England’s defeat of Baba Azam and Co. on the opening day of the run-heavy Rawalpindi Test match. 

Former England skipper Michael Atherton also took a trip down the memory lane by giving a special mention to legendary Indian opener Sehwag after the Ben Stokes-led side created a world record on Thursday against hosts Pakistan. England broke with its long-standing tradition of playing red-ball cricket in the second ICC World Test Championship and set a new world record in their 17-year absence from the Asian nation. 

On Day 1 of the first Test at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium, England, led by Stokes, posted a record-breaking score of 506-4.

On Thursday, the Three Lions had as many as four batters score centuries. During the historic Test match between the T20 World Cup 2022 finalists, former England captain Atherton praised openers Ben Duckett and Zak Crawley for their efforts.

“I think it was England’s most dominant opening two hours of a Test match. That’s a sign of an era that is changing rather than the specifics. I haven’t seen anything more dominant from England. I am thinking back to the really aggressive openers that I’ve seen down the years. Virender Sehwag. I’ve seen him play incredible innings at the top of the order. Mathew Hayden and so they certainly have been dominant openers before,”

Atherton said.

At Multan, Sehwag, a former captain of India, became India’s first triple-centurion in Test cricket. Sehwag and Dravid put together an unforgettable 410-run partnership against Pakistan in 2006 following his heroics in 2004. On Thursday, Britain openers Crawley (122) and Duckett (107) established the groundwork for a record-breaking total with a 233-run stand against Pakistan at Rawalpindi.

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“These conditions allowed Ben Duckett and Zak Crawley to express themselves to the fullest really, and they both played superbly. Pakistan ran the back foot right from the outset. 500 is still hard to believe,”

Atherton added.