There has never been an opening batsman like Virender Sehwag. The boy from a Delhi grain-trading family who walked out to face Test bowlers as if they were club spinners, who scored two triple-centuries and one 293, who hit the first ball of every Test he played as if he were already on 100 — he is, by any honest measure, the most entertaining opener cricket has produced. Behind every reckless cover drive sat a deeply Delhi Punjabi grain-merchant family — a Najafgarh-born father, a homemaker mother, a wife from a wealthy Rohtak business family, and two sons growing up in the international school he and his wife founded.

The Family's Roots: The Punjabi Khatri Grain Traders of Najafgarh

The Sehwag family belongs to the Punjabi Khatri community, with deep roots in the village of Najafgarh in southwest Delhi — the rural-edge district whose name would later become Sehwag's most famous nickname, the Nawab of Najafgarh.

Virender himself was born in Delhi on 20 October 1978 in the family's joint-family home in Najafgarh.

His Father: Krishan Sehwag — The Grain Merchant

Krishan Sehwag (sometimes given as Kishan) ran a small grain-trading business in Delhi — buying wheat and rice from north Indian mandis and selling it on to Delhi traders. He was the parent who first noticed Virender's interest in cricket and, despite the family's discomfort with cricket as a career path, allowed his son to pursue it.

He passed away in 2014.

His Mother: Krishna Sehwag

Krishna Sehwag is the matriarch of the household and has been a constant presence at Virender's home matches in Delhi through his entire career.

His Wife: Aarti Ahlawat — The Family Friend Who Became His Wife

Aarti Sehwag née Ahlawat is from a wealthy Punjabi business family based in Rohtak, Haryana. The two families had known each other for years, and Virender and Aarti's marriage was an arranged alliance — a union of two business families that had socialised together for a decade. They married on 22 April 2004.

Together with Virender, Aarti runs the Sehwag International School in Jhajjar, Haryana — a 23-acre residential school that they founded in 2011. She handles the operational and educational side of the school, while Virender lends his name and cricket academy structure.

Their Sons: Aaryavir and Vedant

Sehwag and Aarti have two sons.

Aaryavir Sehwag, the elder son, was born 18 October 2007. He plays junior cricket at the Sehwag International School and has been spotted at Delhi age-group trials.

Vedant Sehwag, the younger son, was born April 2010.

The Sehwag Family Tree at a Glance

Community / Origins

  • Punjabi Khatri community of Delhi
  • Native village: Najafgarh, southwest Delhi

Parents

  • Father: Krishan Sehwag (died 2014) — Delhi grain merchant
  • Mother: Krishna Sehwag — homemaker

Siblings

  • Virender has elder siblings (sisters Manju and Anju, and an elder brother)

Virender Sehwag

  • Born 20 October 1978, Delhi
  • Arora Vidya School & Jamia Millia Islamia, Delhi
  • ODI debut: 1 April 1999 vs Pakistan, Mohali
  • Test debut: 3 November 2001 vs South Africa, Bloemfontein
  • 104 Tests, 8,586 runs, 23 centuries (incl. two triple-hundreds: 309 vs Pakistan, Multan 2004; 319 vs South Africa, Chennai 2008)
  • 251 ODIs, 8,273 runs incl. 219 vs West Indies (ODI double-century)
  • Padma Shri (2010), Arjuna Award (2002), Wisden Leading Cricketer in the World (2008, 2009)

Wife: Aarti Sehwag née Ahlawat

  • From Rohtak, Haryana
  • Married Virender on 22 April 2004
  • Co-founder, Sehwag International School (Jhajjar)

Children

  • Aaryavir Sehwag (b. 18 October 2007)
  • Vedant Sehwag (b. April 2010)

The Multan Triple Hundred and a Career Without Brakes

Sehwag's 309 against Pakistan at Multan in March 2004 — the first triple-century by an Indian in Test cricket — is one of the defining innings of the modern era. He brought up the triple with a six. He told Sachin Tendulkar at the other end, "Bhai, ek aur sixer maarna hai" — "I have to hit one more six."

He scored a second triple — 319 against South Africa at Chennai in 2008 — and was for several years the most explosive opener in world cricket. He hit centuries at the fastest strike rates in Test history. He won the 2011 World Cup with India. He retired in 2015.

He runs the Sehwag International School and a popular cricket commentary channel.

What the Sehwag Family Story Teaches Us

The Sehwag story is the modern Delhi family story written at its most entertaining. A Najafgarh grain merchant father who allowed his son to play. A homemaker mother. An arranged-but-loving marriage to a Rohtak business family. Two young sons growing up at the cricket school their parents built. A family that has, in one generation, gone from a Najafgarh grain shop to a 23-acre residential international school.

For every family — large or small, famous or otherwise — the Sehwag story carries the same lesson. The village name matters. The family business matters. The shopkeeper great-grandfather matters. Write them down. The Nawab of Najafgarh did not come from nowhere; he came from a Punjabi grain shop. Your own family's geography is, in the same way, the real story of who you are.

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