Batsmen are remembered more if they get out on exactly 100 or 200: Steve Waugh

Former Australian skipper Steve Waugh believes that the batsmen are best remembered if he loses his wicket on exactly 100 or 200. He was talking in relation with the Indian skipper Virat Kohli’s 200, which he scored against West Indies in the first Test match of the series.

Virat has become the first Indian and 7th batsman to be out on an ‘exact 200’. The other six are Wally Hammond (England), Mohsin Khan (Pakistan), Graeme Smith (South Africa), Mushfiqur Rahim (Bangladesh), David Boon and Steve Waugh (both Australia).

Speaking from his home on Saturday, Waugh said, “You get remembered more when you get out on 100 or 200 runs exactly.”

He doesn’t believe that the batsmen become impatient after reaching big landmarks but said that they might relax a bit subconsciously. “No (they don’t lose patience). They all want to carry on and get bigger scores, maybe subconsciously they relax,” he said.

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“The disappointment on being out at this score is same as any batsman who gets out on any other score,” he further elaborated.

He is associated with India’s charitable institution – Udayan and has also started the Steve Waugh Cricket Clinics in Sydney and New South Wales in Australia. “I see every element of the coaching journey as both a learning experience and an opportunity for building character. Our approach is to help participants develop a lifelong love and enjoyment of the game – no matter what level they are playing at,” he said.

Similar to Kohli, Mohsin Khan also lost his wicket on the second ball after he completed his double-ton. “There was a break (bad weather, rain etc.) between my 199th and 200th run. During the break, I was asked by my captain Imran Khan to accelerate the run-rate after 200 runs. In a bid to allow him to declare, I was going for a big hit and lost my wicket.”

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“The batsman does become relaxed after 200 runs and tries to score more freely,” he said.

“Virat is a great batsman and he is my favourite after Sachin Tendulkar,” Khan added.