Sehwag's dream innings

We have had an up and down week and there have been a lot of mixed emotions in the camp. It started with a truly world-class innings by Virender Sehwag and a fantastic victory over Deccan Chargers. Watching Viru’s innings was like having a dream. He played shots most people can only imagine themselves playing. It was really special.

We knew that we would have to win all of our last five games remain in contention for a spot in the top four but all our hopes were shattered by our loss to Mumbai. The match was a great spectacle at the Wankhede. It’s an amazing stadium and the atmosphere was electric. It was the loudest crowd I had ever experienced. Mumbai are a mighty side and it’s a pity we couldn’t overcome them. Unfortunately, that’s cricket. It has been a disappointing IPL4 with all the talent in the squad but in the bigger scheme of things we are gelling very well as a team so the future looks good.

We’ve had some great times off the field though. We opened a hotel sports facility in Hyderabad which was quite fun and we also visited our owner GMR's charity initiative. The charity aims to help underprivileged men, women and children. It has a school for the children and gives them a fantastic opportunity to get a good education.

They also have classes for adults where they combine with different companies to teach certain skills which will help with getting those people employed in certain trades. For example, they do courses in cellphone repairs, computers and mechanics. I thought it was an amazing initiative and I was very touched.

We are halfway through our 12 days on the road. It has been a long trip with lots of flights and bus rides and we are now on our way to Chennai for the next game on Thursday. We have three games left and we need to finish with a bang. Hopefully we will.