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Q&A Sachin Tendulkar
>photographyGETTYIMAGES
I wanted to bea mixture of SunilGavaskar andViv Richards. I
thought being apackage of thosetwo would be the
ultimate thing
W
HEN THE dening moment
o his career arrived earlier
this year, Sachin Tendulkar
wasnt in the middle o the
eld wielding his bat, nor
was he even on the balcony
watching his team-mates.
Instead he was on his owninside the dressing room, his hands clasped together and his
eyes closed as he prayed in silence.
He only knew India had won the World Cup when he
heard that cathartic roar reverberate around the Wankhede
Stadium as his captain MS Dhoni hit the winning runs
against Sri Lanka.
Tendulkar made his way to the balcony where he was
immediately lost in the embrace o his team-mates. He was
the ocus o the national outpouring o joy, they had won it
or him, and his ace was wet with tears, as each member o
the side hugged him.
Tendulkar describes the experience as a dierent kind
o eeling, a high, like living on a dierent planet, it elt as
though I was fying.
He had waited 22 years or this moment. For all his
personal records, and he boasts the complete set o the
most Test runs and Test centuries, and the most ODI
runs and ODI centuries, he wanted something tangible, a
trophy to lit, a medal to wear around his neck, and to win
something as part o an Indian team.Tendulkar had played in the previous ve World Cups,
but allen short each time. He had got close in 2003 beore
losing the nal to Australia, but the last time in 2007 India
had been bundled out early at the rst stage, leaving him
shattered beyond words.
Eighteen months beore Indias World Cup triumph,
Tendulkar had told me he couldnt bear the thought o
retiring rom international cricket without having won the
tournament. Yet having nally achieved his ambition, he
is showing no interest in winding down his career, and is
relishing touring Australia this summer and attempting to win
a Test series here or the rst time.
36 JANUARY 2011
Sam Pilger was privileged to talk with Sachin Tendulkar, who talked
o beginnings, all things batting and being the best since Bradman
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When one gets compared to TheDon, its a big thing. All players
rom that era have to be respected orwhat they achieved. He told us that on themorning o a Test he would go into work,then play in the Test and then sometimesin the evening, go back to work
Tendulkar with Sunil
Gavaskar, a batsman he
idolised as a youngster
and passed as Indias
leading run scorer and
Test century maker
This will be Tendulkars th tour here,
and overall his 11th series against Australia.
Throughout the last two decades, the Little
Master has always saved his best or Australia,
rom the raw 18-year-old talent who took on
Merv Hughes and Craig McDermott to score two
Test centuries on his rst tour way back in 1991-
92, to the peerless veteran who scored 214 and
an unbeaten 53 in his most recent Test againstAustralia in Bangalore as India successully
retained the Border-Gavaskar Trophy.
Tendulkar has scored more international
runs against Australia than any other batsman
in the history o the game, a staggering 6,209,
including 20 centuries.
It is worth noting he amassed the vast
majority o these runs taking on the might o
Shane Warne and Glenn McGrath when Australia
were the best side in the world, possibly the best
side ever. His averages in both Tests (60.59)
and ODIs (46.33) versus Australia are superior
to his overall career averages.
At the time o writing, ahead o the ODI series
against West Indies that he was not expected
to play in, Tendulkar was still stranded on 99
international centuries, needing just one more to
create cricketing history, having also become the
rst player to pass 15,000 Test runs.
To place this in perspective, the nearest
batsman to him is Ricky Ponting with 69
international centuries. Tendulkars great rivalMuttiah Muralitharan has said he believes his
current total, whether he reaches a century or
not, will not be beaten or 100 years.
He might be the greatest batsman o modern
times, eted as a God in India by over a billion
people, but when you meet him in person he
is beret o any ego or even the smallest hint o
arrogance.
This year I have been helping Tendulkar
produce his Ocial Opus, and in conversation
he remains an unerringly polite and humble
character, who always speaks quietly and
thoughtully.
Rahul Dravid recently said the reason
you have played so long is that you have
retained a child-like love o cricket?
Would you agree with that?
Yes, and I think it is really important to keep
that. This love is what drives me every mornin
to go out and do it. I love the game as much
as I did when I started. I still get just as excited
rom practising as when I was a kid. As long athat re is still there, it makes sense to continu
There are times when I end up batting or a lo
time, but I never eel like I have had enough a
need to stop.
What is it about cricket that you love so
much?
Obviously it has to be batting, and the
satisaction you get rom just a practice sessio
These practice sessions are where your cricke
starts, and rom there everything else comes.
You have to enjoy them, otherwise it is hard to
progress. It is here that I have a lot o un, tryi
38 JANUARY 2011 facebook.com/InsideCricke
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Losing his wicket to the
unlikely source of Michael
Vaughan, who details the
experience in this feature
witter.com/InsideCricketOz
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to correct things in my game. When you have got
it right, there is great satisaction there, it speaks
to your heart.
Have you ever allen out o love with
cricket?
No, but there are tough times along the way.
There have been many tough periods, probably
the toughest was when I had my tennis elbow
injury [2004]. I was worried, I thought my career
was over, because I couldnt pick up a cricket
bat. When I did manage to bat, and I thought Iwas hitting the ball hard, 12-year-old boys could
stop the ball ater 10 metres. I just couldnt hit
the ball. That was scary, I thought I would never
be able to bat again.
Over your career, have you noticed that
Indias work ethic and proessionalism has
signicantly improved?
The game and the demands were dierent
when I started, and with time everything has
changed. There is more planning, and it is more
precise, there is nothing random about it. The
work-out sessions are tailored to how you eel. I
am a batsman, so my sessions are dierent to abowler, but when I joined the team in 1989 that
wasnt there. Even the clothing was dierent,
each player wore what they liked, but now with
the sponsors and the BCCI logo on our clothes
the entire set-up has changed.
Do the players have a harder mental
approach now?
I wouldnt say the players are tougher now than
when I started. It is exactly the same. But I
denitely eel that in the recent past we have
produced more match winners.
It is oten said you are completely sel-sucient in your game, but do you seek
advice rom others as well?
I speak a lot with my brother and in my schoo
days Id speak a lot with my coach. Ater that
time, whenever senior cricketers Sunil Gavask
and Ravi Shastri travelled with us Id discuss m
game with them. Over the last 22 years, weve
had many coaches with India and Ive discuss
my game with them, too. Generally I like to do
that. Im not someone who is chasing to be 10
per cent technically correct. There are certain
basics that are extremely important, but beyo
that its up to an individual how to adjust to
Top, above and right:
Tendulkar says a love of
practice is a key to his success
40 JANUARY 2011 facebook.com/InsideCricke
The Australian camp always had
a pretty simple game plan or
dealing with Sachin: bowl a linejust outside o stump, which
we elt was our best opportunity
to get him caught behind.
The thing you had to avoid is
bowling too straight, because he is
so good down the leg side, thats where he
could cause real damage.
He loved playing straight with a short
back lit, and just punching it right back
down the ground. However, i you bowled
it too wide on the o-stump he could really
put the ball away, especially with the ast
outelds in India.
You had tobe patient,
but above all,
you had to be
accurate. He
really tested
your ability to
put the ball
where you
wanted it. When
he got going he
was pretty hard
to stop. Your margin or error was very, very
small. It was hard work, because you knew
i you werent on your game, you were goingto get punished.
Sometimes when you were bowling to him
it honestly elt as though his bat was about
three eet bloody wide.
His great strength was that he had a
simple game plan and stuck to it. He knew
what he wanted to do, and knew every part
o his game so well, all his strengths and
weaknesses.
Even when he wasnt in the best orm,
scoring runs reely and seeing the ball well,
he ound a way to survive and stay there.
No matter how rustrated you got, you
never sledged Sachin. Quite simply, you justran the risk o annoying him, and giving him
greater motivation, and that would be plain
stupid, because it was hard enough bowling
to him to begin with.
There were guys you could rile, but
Sachin had this mask o coolness you
simply couldnt get past. I never saw him
rattled; anything bowlers said to him
was just shrugged o, he didnt react to
anything, he just stayed in his bubble, his
own zone, and blocked everything else out.
No matterhow rustrated
you got, younever sledged
Sachin. Youran the risko annoying
him and thatwould be plain
stupid
Bowling toSachin
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JAson Gillespie
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o either end! Ive gone a little way in both
directions. I can deend when I have to deend
. . . but heroes are always heroes and I dont
think one can get better than that. I always
wanted to get somewhere close. So when itcomes to being solid, i you can get anywhere
near as solid as Gavaskar then thats good.
And i you can get anywhere close to being as
destructive as Viv Richards, then you would b
very dangerous player.
And now do you eel you have personally
infuenced todays generation o Indian
batsmen?
For any cricketer whos played or a reasonabl
period and then had that impact on the next
generation, then that is your contribution to
cricket. When [Virender] Sehwag came into
the side in 2002 and he said, I used to watchyou bat on TV and try and replicate all the
movements that elt wonderul to know that I
had an impact on the next generation and tha
would continue. So thats pleasing to me.
Since then Sehwag has developed into on
o the great batsmen in modern cricket.
How would you compare your game to his
I think hes brilliant. His thought process is
completely dierent to any other person. Whe
he made his debut I was batting with him at
that stage and when he scored a hundred I wa
there. So we had a long partnership. Ive enjoy
various situations. Its about awareness and i
youre aware o what the opposition is trying to
do that helps more than just being technically
correct.
So youre open to advice?
Always, because I think you can only learn i
youre open to discussion but i you shut all the
doors then I dont think things work out. Its up
to you how much you want to implement whats
been said in the discussion and how much you
want to go and practice whats been suggested.
Do you watch DVDs o your own bat ting?
I do. I I eel there is a need, I do it. But not all
the time. Earlier in my career, when I started
playing, I did it all the time. Maybe the rst six or
seven years o my career. But ater that I didnt
want to complicate things too much.
Do you think you and your generation have
changed the Indian style o batting?
Yeah. I always wanted to be a mixture o Sunil
Gavaskar and Viv Richards. I elt I should be
able to deend when I wanted to deend, and
attack when I wanted to attack. The opposition
should not decide whether I was going to attack
or deend. I thought being a package o those
two would be the ultimate thing.
Have you achieved that?
No, I dont think Ive gone to the extreme
There were several things that struck me
through Sachins career. The rst was a
basic thing. As a bowler, you watch wherethe batsman moves, especially
when youre quick and you
bounce him. Is the batsman
willing to stay in line and
take a hit?
I he is ready to be hit,
then other technical issues
resolve themselves. I youre
not willing to be hit then everything else
becomes a problem. Sachin never finched,
on any track, against any bowler.
Obviously he is excellent technically,
the best technician in the world. But it
is his hunger that is rightening. Over 20years and he still wants to score runs. Most
cricketers go ater 13 or 14 years, batsmen
a little longer and these days that might
not happen anymore. But over 20? And still
scoring runs? It is incredible.
Over the last
our years alone,
since so many
wrote him o,
hes scored
more runs and
hundreds than
some do in their
entire career.O the eld
I know what
others know,
his humility,
and his shyness
in public. Once, during a Test in India I
saw him head back to the hotel ater play
with his bat. Most players leave their kit
overnight in the dressing room during a
Test, but he went back with his bats.
I asked him why and he just said he
wanted to keep them with him. Maybe it
was superstition, maybe devotion.
Hes obviously one o the best batsmenI bowled to. Hes very dierent to a Brian
Lara or example, another great, who would
be at you rom the start and be fashy. Once
he got going it was dicult to stop him but
with Lara, you always elt there might be a
chance.
Sachin takes time to settle in, is less
risky and early on, more balanced at the
crease. Once he gets in, though, you know
he is there to stay.
Sachin neverfinched, on
any track,against
any bowler.Obviously he
is excellenttechnically,but it is his
hunger that isrightening
Bowling toSachin
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WAQAr Younis
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it; I enjoy his skill. Hes really, really talented and
he likes to take the opposition on and he backs
himsel in various conditions. There have been
times where hes ailed but also times when he
destroyed the opposition, but hes not changed
his approach much. Hes pretty much in the
same gear whenever he goes to play. I think the
best Ive seen him bat was in Australia on our
last tour. In Adelaide, he scored 150-something
[151 o 236 balls] but that was an inningswhere we had to kill time and one could actually
see Sehwags solid deence there: blocking
and leaving and basically killing time. It was a
magnicent innings.
Once Sir Donald Bradman was deemed to
be untouchable, but in recent years it has
been argued with your longevity and sheer
number o runs you are his equal or have
even surpassed him. How do you eel about
that?
I dont know how to react to that. Ive never
liked those comparisons. But when one gets
compared to The Don, its a big thing. ButI think all players rom that era have to be
respected or what they achieved in their
era. The comparisons? I dont know. The way
he has played his cricket was so dierent:
when we met, he told us that on the morning
o a Test match he would go into work, then
go o and play in the Test match and then
sometimes in the evening, go back to work. So
it was completely dierent. Now the game has
changed. And maybe in 40 years time players
will be doing completely dierent things to what
we are doing now.
But do you have a sense o pride that you
are compared to someone hailed as the
greatest batsman ever?
The dream was to be one o the top players. And
i I got there then I am quite happy.
This will be your 11th series against
Australia. What are your memories o your
rst one back in 1991-92?
I remember when we landed in Australia I was
very excited because I wanted to prove a point
and establish mysel. I learned in Australia, I
required a dierent approach to anything else I
had used beore. The cricket here was dierent,
and they had a very strong bowling attack. It was
a big, big challenge.
What was it like acing Bruce Reid, Craig
McDermott, Merv Hughes and MikeWhitney in that series?
I was condent about taking them on, and about
my ability. I didnt want them to go sot on me,
I was prepared or hard and tough cricket. The
experience made me even tougher. It was a
tough side, and I remember in Perth I played
a backward deensive shot and I leant down to
pick up the ball, and Allan Border rom gully said
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I can tell you rom experience he is
very vulnerable to part-time o-spin! At
Trent Bridge in 2002 I claimed SachinTendulkars wicket, and will happily
dine o it orever.
My spell o bowling didnt
start well. To be honest, he just
took the piss, and was hitting
boundaries whenever he wanted.
He is smart, because he subtly
milks average part-time spinners like
me to keep them on, and then attacks good
spinners to get them hauled o.
He had driven me or our with my
previous ball, so I thought with the next
one I would toss it a bit higher and wider.
He went or it again, but it just caught theedge o the rough and spun right back in to
the stumps. Oh, what a wonderul eeling.
I seem to recall I embarked on quite a
celebration. Come on, it isnt every day you
take the wicket o arguably the greatest
cricketer ever.
I still have the ball and the stump, Sachin
kindly signed both or me, which I have
proudly on display at home in my snooker
room.
Later in that series, we had no joy as
he made 193 at Headingley. There wasnt
much we could do, he got in and then just
took the piss, hitting it all over the ground.Nothing we tried worked. But even though
we couldnt get him out, I enjoyed the
exhibition, watching a master at work doing
his thing.
In 2007 I captained England in a Test
series against India, and over the course o
the summer you could tell he wasnt at his
absolute best. We elt we bowled well to
him in that series.
Chris Tremlett bowled really well to him,
and used his height to get some steep
bounce, which he didnt like. Freddie
Flinto troubled him quite a lot, getting the
ball to angle in, and Ryan Sidebottom madehim play and miss at a lot o balls.
It was hard to draw up plans or him,
but my approach was to be aggressive, try
to unsettle him with raw pace. We looked
to put the ball around o stump early on,
tempt him orward and gain a snick.
At the time he was struggling a bit with
the short ball, but since then, I think he
looked at that series, and has once again
started to deal with it with his usual
composure and calmness.
Dont touch the ball. I thought, OK, ne, I wont
touch the ball. They were tough characters. It
gave me a dierent taste o cricket.
What do you remember about your two
centuries that summer?In the third Test in Sydney I got a hundred, and
I elt like I was batting well. It was a wicket or
spinners, so I enjoyed making runs. Then again
that track in Perth was really ast and had a lot
o bounce, and big cracks. I elt because o that
the kind o shots I played in that innings has to
make it one o my best, in my personal top 10
o innings. At that stage o my career or me to
make that century was extremely important, and
ater it my cricket went to a new level. It boosted
me. I played with a great sense o reedom.
Later on what do you remember about acing
Australia when they were the best team in
the world, acing Glenn McGrath rom one
end and Shane Warne rom the other?
It was good I mean, they played aggressive
cricket; they had aggressive elds. And I was
playing attacking cricket, so . . . it worked. Thewere times when I was able to push them on t
back oot. And there were times when I orced
them to set deensive elds or me. And there
were times when I got out early. But generally
I would say that, on the whole, I had the uppe
hand . . . It was a good challenge. You knew th
runs werent going to come easy.
Sam Pilger is the Executive Editor o
The Ofcial Sachin Tendulkar Opus, the
defnitive story o Tendulkars lie and
career due to be published in 2012. For
more inormation go to tendulkaropus.co
I remember in Perth I played a backward
deensive shot and I leant down to pickup the ball, and Allan Border rom gully saidDont touch the ball. I thought, OK, ne, I wontouch the ball. They were tough characters. Itgave me a dierent taste o cricket
Bowling toSachin
3pArt
MichAel VAuGhAn
Tendulkar as
16-year-old i
October 198
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