Virender Sehwag, a name that used to send shivers down the spine of any bowling attack in the world, is ready to share his experience and knowledge with the young, blooming talents of Indian cricket in the IPL.
The 37-year-old has played for several teams in the IPL, and according to the right-hander, the cash-rich league has had a big impact on Indian cricket.
The former India opening batsman believes IPL is a great platform for young Indian talents to showcase their cricketing skills.
"I think it is a platform for a young Indian player. If you look at 2000-01, when I joined the team, we took 20 games to get used to international cricket," Sehwag said in an exclusive interview with ESPNCricinfo.
"Now, someone like Shikhar Dhawan, who has played in the IPL, is used to the pace, and he scored 180-odd on Test debut against Australia."
The former Kings XI Punjab batsman decided to retire from the IPL because he did not want any young talents to miss out on an opportunity because of him.
Manan Vohra found it a little difficult to find a place in the playing XI of the Kings XI Punjab as Sehwag had way more experience under his belt.
"Indian players play in the IPL to get into the Indian team. There is no point playing in the IPL when I have retired from international cricket. I did not want a youngster to miss out because of me," Sehwag added.
"Manan Vohra can now play all the 14 games and if he does well, he can also get into the Indian team. I didn't want to stop a youngster from playing."
Many people have criticised the IPL and have gone on to say that players' performances in the glamourous T20 league should not be the criteria for selection to the India team. And on the other hand, many have also supported the IPL, as it gives a chance to the young budding talents to prove their worth alongside the stars of international cricket.
Sehwag also believes that a lot of players get noticed after they play in the IPL. He gave the examples of Glenn Maxwell, Yusuf Pathan, David Warner and Ravindra Jadeja as players who caught the eye of the selectors and later went on to play for their respective nations.
"What is the harm if a domestic player plays in the IPL?" Sehwag asked. "It is only the good players who get selected to play. Give me one player who is not good and playing in the IPL. If he's good enough, he can get selected for India as well, as it is a platform."
"A lot of players like Ravindra Jadeja, Yusuf Pathan, Warner and Glenn Maxwell were noticed at the IPL first. It is a platform for players all over the world and not just Indian players."
"If a player is playing the IPL and earning money, it is not his fault that he is not playing for India. He is not quitting the game. He is playing first-class, one-day cricket and the IPL. If the selectors don't pick him, what can the player do?"
Sehwag does not want to end his association with cricket as he still loves the game. He is also considering taking up the role of a mentor or a batting consultant in the IPL for next season, while also not ruling out taking up a commentator's role.
"I would love to be a coach, mentor or a batting consultant. I would love to commentate in Hindi as most people who watch the game are more comfortable with Hindi in India rather than English," Sehwag said.
"If any IPL team wants me to be a mentor or a batting consultant, I would love to do that. I can share my knowledge with the youngsters."
Sehwag, who has retired from the international game, is currently focusing on playing in the Masters Champions League (MCL) T20 2016, which starts later this month in Dubai.
