Indian middle order batsman VVS Laxman has lashed out at Michael Vaughan for accusing him of applying Vaseline on his bat during the second Test at Nottingham.
"Has vaseline on the outside edge saved the day for Laxman?" tweeted Vaughan.
"It was ridiculous," a visibly peeved Laxman told MiD DAY after a net session here on Monday.
"First of all, I had never heard that batsmen could apply vaseline. I have heard bowlers using it (vaseline) to shape the ball. I was quite surprised to hear that I used vaseline on the bat. It is surprising that people can make a joke out of all this," Laxman added.
The Hyderabadi was obviously disappointed for missing out on a hundred after scoring a half-century in the second Test. "I enjoyed scoring those 13 runs in that last one hour before the close of play in the first innings.
"Runs were not important at that time; the challenge was to hang in there and bat sensibly. Rahul (Dravid) and I just concentrated on being at the crease. The ball was swinging a lot, so we were trying to keep our bat as close as possible to the body.
"Next morning, I got out after scoring 54. I should have got a hundred. Rahul batted really well for his hundred (117). I just missed it. In fact, I am batting well but am not able to score a big one," he lamented.
The 3rd Test at Edgbaston gives Laxman and company the perfect opportunity to fight back and prove that they are worthy of being the number one Test team in the world.
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