PLAUDITS POUR IN FOR THE VERY VERY VERY SPECIAL

VVS Laxman unfortunately and rather harshly doesnt get the due that other newcomers and flat track bully like Mahendra singh Dhoni get.But a universal opinion is that in this Indian batting line up he is on par with the likes of Sachin and Rahul dravid.Cricket legends Sunil Gavaskar and Ian Chappell on Thursday heaped praises on Indian batsman VVS Laxman after he brought up another sublime century on day two of the second Test at Sydney.

"It is hard to find anybody who can match VVS when he is on song," said Gavaskar.

"Today it is a power game and suddenly you find someone like VVS who caresses the ball. This is sublime talent and I admire his elegance," he said while analysing the day's play on STAR Cricket.

Ian Chappell said he was impressed with the way Laxman took the fight to the Aussies.

"VVS took on the fast bowlers early on. Somebody from India had to do that. He played a glorious pull shot off Brett Lee and then one off Stuart Clark," he said.

"Another important thing to notice was that in spite of Rahul Dravid being in a rut, he did not let that affect him at all."

The former Aussie captain was also insistent that Laxman should continue to bat at the No.3 position even if the team management decided to move Dravid from the opener's slot.

"I always think that number three is the slot for him. Even if they decide to move Rahul from the opening position, VVS should still play at No.3 because he can counter-attack," Chappell noted.

Other former players and cricket pundits were also all gung-ho about his knock.

Former Australian batsman Michael Slater said, "VVS is a class act, he is the best timer I have ever seen. He was full of entertainment today."

Ravi Shastri said Laxman could only be compared to former Pakistan batsman Zaheer Abbas as only the two "could make batting look easy".