Sachin Tendulkar's abilty to change, adapt and mould his batting according to the conditions around him is what makes his an exceptional player, opines Rahul Dravid. “What makes him a phenomenal player is that he has done so many things, be it scoring the highest number of Test and one-day runs or scorng a century of international centuries. What he has done is set a benchmark for future generations which, probably, would be almost impossible for anyone to emulate,” Dravid tells Hindustan Times.
“I think his incredible hunger for runs was ingrained in him while he grew up playing cricket in Mumbai's Shivaji Park and it is fantastic to see him still retain that desire, that hunger to keep on scoring. Just imagine, he started playing cricket a long, long time ago, 22 years to be precise. Everything around him has changed. Not only has the game changed a lot in these years, his own body has gone through a lot and it is not easy to be adapting to these changing conditions. That he has done exactly that makes him someone very special, a truly amazing player,” says Dravid to HT.
Meanwhile Sachin’s coach Ramakant Achrekar exclaims while stretching his hand forward in elation, “I had always expected Sachin to do very well and today am very happy. I cannot explain how happy I am, it is unbelievable.” According to a report in HT, Achrekar had been puzzled by the prolonged century drought Tendulkar was experiencing. “Sachin failing again and again was difficult to understand. I would get tense up and my mood would sour every time he was dismissed. He is far from finished at the international level. My message to him would be to continue playing the way he has. In fact, he has a lot more to offer to cricket,” he tells.
According to Sourav Ganguly one can only salute Sachin’s grit, gumption and ability that has seen him shoulder the responsibilities for Team India for the past 22 years without ever losing focus. “And he has always kept his feet on the ground. Cricket is his life. From a personal point of view, numbers actually mean nothing when it comes to evaluating Sachin. In my book, he is the greatest player I have seen, and even if had not scored so many runs or centuries, he would have been on top of my list. It has been an honour and privilege to have played alongside him and shared the dressing room with the Little Master. It has been a long association and a memorable one. I congratulate Sachin and his family,” Ganguly writes in his column in The Times Of India.
Meanwhile, in the never-ending debate on who among Donald Bradman and Sachin Tendulkar is the greatest batsman of all time, former England captain Naseer Hussain on Friday said his vote goes to the iconic Indian. “Sir Donald Bradman was great but for me the greatest batsman to have ever played the game is Sachin Tendulkar,” he said.
Meanwhile Ravi Shahstri feels sachin can still compete, and be better than most. “Otherwise he wouldn’t be around. He’s a proud, sensible man and wouldn’t open himself to ridicule. You still don’t have his substitute. He must say bye to One-dayers very soon. There is nothing more to achieve or prove. But it has to be his call. He will do what’s best for him and the nation. Tendulkar is a once-in-acentury batsman. Make the most of this living legend in your midst,” Shastri writes in TOI.
Other news (TOI, H, Indian Express, The Hindu, The Tribune):
Haddin leaves tour for personal reasons: Australian wicketkeeper Brad Haddin is returning home from the tour of the West Indies for personal reasons and will be replaced by Peter Nevill. Nevill will serve as Matthew Wade's understudy, meaning the Victorian keeper is almost certain to make his Test debut against the West Indies next month. Haddin had been in the Caribbean for less than a week with the Australian squad.
Aussie women complete 3-0 sweep: Australian women completed a 3-0 clean sweep of their One-day International series against their Indian counterparts when they won the third and final match by five wickets in Mumbai. The Australian team won with 86 balls to spare at the Wankhede Stadium. India had lost the first two games by 30 runs at Ahmedabad and a massive 221 runs here.
Clarke can earn over $1 million for IPL stint: Australia's skipper Michael Clarke could earn over one million dollars for a few weeks’ work at the Indian Premier League. Former India skipper Sourav Ganguly confirmed that his team Pune Warriors were keen to get Clarke, even though Australia's tour of the West Indies would allow him to play in only the final seven games of the T20 competition in May.
South Africa allrounder Kleinveldt fails drug test: A South African anti-doping organization has said that Proteas allrounder Rory Kleinveldt had failed a doping test. The South African Institute for Drug-Free Sport said that Kleinveldt returned a positive sample for a “specified substance”, but declined to give further details.
Aussie women complete 3-0 sweep: Australian women completed a 3-0 clean sweep of their One-day International series against their Indian counterparts when they won the third and final match by five wickets in Mumbai. The Australian team won with 86 balls to spare at the Wankhede Stadium. India had lost the first two games by 30 runs at Ahmedabad and a massive 221 runs here.
