Will the real VVS Laxman stand up?

VVS Laxman © Allsport Australia

VVS Laxman is one of the most enigmatic characters in Indian cricket. A batsman who scores 1415 runs and eight centuries in a Ranji Trophy season has to be special. And it's not like Laxman is just a flat track bully. His tour de force in Sydney in January against an attack including Glenn McGrath, Brett Lee and Shane Warne dispels any comment to that effect. Indeed Laxman's Test average overseas is more than eight runs higher than at home.

An infuriating lack of consistency cannot have helped his cause any more than the folly of a selection committee that considers him an opener in spite of all evidence to the contrary. An attractive strokemaker, Laxman strangely has found it difficult to adapt to the limited overs game where his record is dismal. He was not chosen amongst the 25 probables for the Asia Cup in Dhaka in April.

Now in Chennai to turn out for employers Indian Airlines in the MRF- Buchi Babu competition, CricInfo caught up with Laxman during a rain delay at the CPT-India Pistons Ground where he reflects on his stopstart career and his aspirations for the impending season.

I didn't promise my father but before going to Bangalore he just said on the dinner table that your aim should be to score a triple hundred. In the previous match against UP in the quarter final, I'd scored a century in each innings. My father told me that if Hyderabad is going to qualify for the final it needs a big knock from you. So I'm really glad I got that triple hundred. It was a very important knock individually for me and for the team because in the last three years we've been coming to the semis but we were not making it to the finals. Since I was in very good nick throughout the season, it was important for me to hang around and get a big score for the team.

The wicket was helping the fast bowlers, it was a green top, there was quite a bit of bounce, they had good quality bowlers in Prasad, Ganesh and Joshi, and we were playing them in their home ground so they had the advantage over us. At the same time I would accept that the wicket was very good for the batsmen. Once you settled down the ball was coming onto the bat and you could play your strokes, it was a good five day wicket. But I rate the knock against UP as more important for the team. We had conceded a lead of 70-80 runs, so to come back into the match and win it, personally it was more satisfying.

I was happy the way I started off the tour. I was in good nick, got two hundreds in two Ranji games before going there and started off with a hundred in Australia (vs Queensland). The wickets in Australia are fast and bouncy while those in Hyderabad are low and slow, so there was some adjustment obviously to be done. I was timing the ball well throughout the Australian tour. I was really disappointed because I was batting well in Adelaide but got out to a very good ball in the second innings. But in Melbourne I played two bad shots. I was in good rhythm but basically I was out due to poor shot selection. In the first innings I drove a ball from McGrath and was caught at slip while in the second innings, I hooked the ball but there was some extra bounce, so my judgement of the bounce was not proper.

In fact throughout the series, I batted the same as in that knock of 167. The only difference was that in Sydney I was playing my shots and getting all of them right. I was in very good rhythm and in a positive frame of mind. My timing was immaculate. I was seeing the ball well, getting into position early and playing some lovely pull shots. On Australian wickets where the bounce is high and the ball is coming through quickly, if you're playing good pull shots, it means you're seeing the ball early. In the one-dayers I felt I let down the team. After the 167 they asked me to stay back to boost the batting strength but I couldn't get much runs and help the team's cause. I was very disappointed with myself.

I've been batting consistently well throughout the season. Even in Australia I was batting well except for the ODI's where I didn't get much runs. I thought I was timing the ball well, my body position was very good. It was one of the best seasons I've had in my career so far. But every batsman is not perfect and I've been seeing my batting on the video, talking to good coaches and senior players. In the off season I've been working on it and hopefully in the coming season you can see the difference.

First and foremost you have to play the new ball. As a middle order batsman unless you're No.3 and an early wicket falls, you don't get to play the new ball. The most important difference is that you have to see off the shine, the bowlers are fresh and if you're batting first the wicket is fresh. Obviously there are some technical and temperamental adjustments to be made. You tend to leave more balls outside the off stump and just try to hang around more. Even if you're in good nick, you can't just go and play all your strokes. I feel the opening partnership is the most valuable partnership in helping the team get a big score. Once you have a stand of anything between 80-100, then it's likely the team will score between 350 and 400.

I'm a natural strokeplayer, so my type of game is suited to both onedayers and Tests because I play a lot of strokes and once I settle down I carry on to get big scores. But unfortunately my average in ODI's doesn't show that. Anyway I've been working really hard in the off season during the past two and a half to three months. I'm sure I can really make a mark for myself in the ODI's as well.

For the first 2-3 weeks after the Ranji final I took time off from cricket totally. For the last two and a half to three months, I've been going regularly to my work. I work with Indian Airlines as an Assistant Commercial Manager. I've been spending at least 2-3 hours every day with my office work. The remaining time I've been concentrating mostly on fitness. The first two months during the off season I've been doing both strength and endurance training. In the last one month I've been working on my skill but its been raining in Hyderabad so I didn't get much practice since we weren't able to get good turf wickets.

I've made it really clear that I want to play as a middle order batsman. Right from my childhood as everyone knows I've been batting in the middle order. When the team wanted me as opener, I readily took it up as a challenge. I think I didn't do all that badly and always gave my best on the field. But unfortunately, more than coming up to someone else's expectations, I didn't live up to my own expectations. I would like to do what comes naturally to me. The ultimate aim is to do well for the country, and I feel I can do a much better job playing as a middle order batsman for the country. The selectors have given me an opportunity as opener and now I hope they give me an opportunity as a middle order batsman.

Luckily for me I've got a very good friends circle. Most of the time if I'm in Hyderabad and not playing cricket, I like spending time with them. I like listening to music, reading autobiographies of great sportspersons and personalities in general and hanging around with friends.