It's ten years today for India's greatest comeback Test win against Australia in Kolkata. VVS Laxman, who scored an epic 281, talks to MiD-DAY...

Laxman acknowledges the cheers for his double ton in Kolkata. PIC/AFP

As Indian cricket lovers wonder whether Mahendra Singh Dhoni's team is capable of emulating Kapil Dev's 1983 World Cup devils, writing off this team could prove dangerous, if not foolhardy.

For, there is a layer of steel that this side has which shows up from time to time.

It could well be that the layer started growing from the time India beat Australia despite following on in the Kolkata Test of 2001. One of the architects of that win, VVS Laxman, who scored 281, talks to MiD DAY about his epic knock and the win which was achieved 10 years to the date. Harbhajan Singh (13 wkts including a hat-trick) and Rahul Dravid (180) were heroes too.

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Critics call this the greatest comeback in Test cricket. Do you agree?
Definitely. For us and probably for the cricketers of this generation, this was the best Test match we were involved in. The belief in ourselves increased so much.

We overcame tough situations because of this Test match that took our confidence to another level. The Kolkata experience helped us believe that irrespective of the situation we are in, we can win matches.

Do you think the Test kicked off a period in which a lot of tough players emerged for India?
Not the start of it, but it was a trigger to take our game to the next level. We started to travel abroad with a better mindset than before and win.