Tendulkar rates Chennai Test ton as his best

The century hit by master blaster Sachin Tendulkar against England just after the 26/11 Mumbai attacks gave him more satisfaction in comparison to his other tons in all varieties of the game, as it brought back smiles on the faces of terror hit Indians.

Tendulkar was a 14-year-old schoolboy, when Dilip Vengsarkar, then the Indian captain, judged him ready to play first-class cricket and he went on to hit 208 centuries in all forms of the game.

"I think the one against England in Chennai last year," he says, without hesitation when asked about his most important innings played so far for India.

"After what happened in Mumbai (the terrorist attacks), the mood of the entire nation was low. Something was needed to put smiles on people’s faces.

"I am by no means suggesting that the people who lost near and dear ones could forget their terrible loss, but if we as a team were able to make them smile for just a couple of seconds, that was an achievement," The Independent quoted Tendulkar, as saying.

"And thanks to the England cricket team who came back very graciously and played against us. You know, cricket in India brings the entire nation together, from the poorest child to a billionaire. We are in a position to make everyone happy, which is very special for me and the whole cricketing fraternity," he said.

He pointed other innings which he considered important were played during his school days.

"I would say that there were a couple in my schooldays that changed my life. In the semi-final of an Under-17s tournament I scored 326 not out, which is when everyone in Mumbai took notice of me. I then scored 346 not out in the final, with Dilip Vengsarkar and Sunil Gavaskar watching."

"I was only 14 at the time, but Vengsarkar wanted me to join the Mumbai first-class team, which contained nine Test players. He had to be sure I was ready. So he invited me to play in the India nets.

"The Indian team had a camp in Mumbai, and he made Kapil Dev and all these guys bowl at me in the nets. After that session he gave a green signal to the selectors," he said in the interview.

The master blaster said that in his first domestic season he scored the highest number of runs for the team.

"There are three trophies in India, and in all three I scored a century on my debut, so my performances were very good, but also the timing was perfect," he said.

Source by: Cricketnext.in.com

Sachin Tendulkar eyes 15000 Test runs, World Cup

It's been nearly four months since Sachin Tendulkar has taken the field. But his ambitions have not diminished.

In an interview with Wisden Tendulkar has said that he has set his sight on amassing 15,000 runs in Test cricket.

Tendulkar has also spoken about his dream of India winning the 2011 World Cup. India is one of the host nations from the sub-continent.

In the interview Tendulkar also talks about John Buchanan's comments on some Indian players in his new book including himself.

"It is only his opinion; John Buchanan doesn't have to be right all the time. If I couldn't handle short deliveries, then I wouldn't still be scoring runs," he said.

"Maybe he needs to change his opinion. There must be something very wrong with all the bowlers around the world that they have allowed me to score so many runs."
And he has again put to rest any questions on retiring from the game.

"I am not pleased yet with what I have done," he said. "Sunil Gavaskar has told me that I have to get to 15,000 runs. He said he would be angry with me and would come and catch me if I didn't. I admire him so much and to score that many would be a terrific achievement, but that is not the only aim."

Tendulkar also spoke about how he has been consistently playing with pain.
"I always play in pain, all the time. I played with a broken finger for the last three months, but you know when pain is manageable or not, and most of the time I can do it," he said.

"I can still do what I did when I was 25 but the body is changing, so your thought process has to change too. I have had to change how I think, which is about taking less risk," he added.

Don Bradman had said Tendulkar reminded him of himself and the Indian batsman was the only modern player in Bradman''s all-time XI.

Does Tendulkar think the same way about anyone? "I would say Virender Sehwag comes closest to my style."

Tendulkar said he was not thinking about retirement yet but he would know when to quit cricket.

"I will know when it is the right time, I won't have to be dragged away. I am the person who will make the decision and I will know whether I still belong."

He admitted life after cricket wouldn't be easy. "It's a scary thought. It has been there for my whole adult life, it will be difficult, I have been around for a long time, I can imagine when I finish I will long to face just 10 more balls but you have to move."

Source by: Cricketnext.in.com

T20 is about smart thinking, fitness: Sachin

India's cricketing great Sachin Tendulkar says ageing players in the Indian Premier League (IPL) have showed Twenty20 cricket is all about "fitness and smart thinking", breaking the myth that the format is only meant for the youngsters.

"I don't think Twenty20 cricket is a young man's game. Talent and smart thinking is the criteria for Twenty20 cricket. Fitness is equally important. Look at Sanath (Jayasuriya), he is nearly 40, or Matthew Hayden. They are striking the ball as well as they have ever been," Tendulkar said.

Retired internationals like Hayden, Adam Gilchrist, Shane Warne and Anil Kumble have outshone the younger lot in the second edition.

Tendulkar, who opted out of Twenty20 internationals, has himself played some scintillating innings.

One such breathtaking knock came alongside Jayasuriya against Kolkata Knight Riders where the two bludgeoned the bowling attack.

The duo, however, could not produce such form with consistency and Tendulkar is quick to admit that batting was the weakness of Mumbai Indians.

"Overall we have played reasonably good cricket. It just that our batting faltered at crucial stages."

"We started well defeating Chennai with an all-round performance, then we had a week off. It was almost a forced break as our match with Rajasthan Royals was washed off."

"We could not add those 12-13 runs more to our scores and gave away one or two extra runs. Our bowling was very much on the track, it just that we could not finish the matches."

Tendulkar said he tried out several combinations to spruce up the batting.

"You cannot be predictable in this form of cricket. We were finding it difficult to finish matches and so we kept changing the combination and hoped for a good result. Sometimes it worked for us like when Dwayne Bravo was promoted to open against Kings XI Punjab and he was terrific."

"In the match against Rajasthan Royals, we needed six runs in nine balls with four wickets in hand and we lost. There is not much explanation you can give about such defeats."

The loss against Rajasthan proved costly. Mumbai Indians were out of the semifinal reckoning after another defeat against Super Kings.

The Mumbaikar also said that loss of key players like Zaheer Khan affected their performance.

"Zaheer's loss was a big blow. After our first six games we lost three players --Zaheer, Shikhar Dhawan and Saurabh Tiwary -- to injuries and it affected the balance of the team. It was tough for us at that stage."

"The owners of the team have stood behind us and backed us. Mrs. Ambani has been with the team and she has been a support to us."

Tendulkar getting better with age: Waugh

Instead of waning with age, Sachin Tendulkar is getting better with every passing day, former Australia captain Steve Waugh said here on Friday.

"He is improving day by day and in his prime form," Waugh said and added in a lighter vein: "Looking at the way (Sachin) Tendulkar is playing, it seems he can play till 50 years."

The Australian great had earlier compared Tendulkar with Sir Don Bradman.

Asked whether he is interested in coaching, the 43-year-old said, "Not thinking about coaching now. Maybe in future, I will think about coaching." Talking to reporters at a cricket clinic at Beleghata in north Kolkata, he praised India's South African coach Gary Kirsten's way of work while describing the jobs of a captain and a coach.

"The captain is always the boss on the field, as he has to be on the spot. The coach on the other hand plays a supporter's role quietly. Look at Kirsten. He goes on about his job very quietly which is exactly the coach's role." Waugh termed Indians as favourites to defend the title in the second edition of the ICC World Twenty20 due in England in June.

"Indians have a very good side. The youngsters are really impressing and the IPL has done good for them.

"But Australians also have a strong chance for the title," he said.

With the England led by a rather inexperienced Andrew Strauss, Waugh said the Baggy Greens have a good chance to retain the Ashes.

"Aussies have an advantage over England. I think Strauss' elevation will only help us," he said, ending his three-day whirlwind tour of the city.

On the last day of the trip that began with visiting to Udayan, a rehabilitation home for children from leprosy colonies near Barrackpore and then getting his hands and feet dirty by taking part in a drive to clean-up city canals, Waugh today gave tips to children in the cricket clinic.

Tendulkar vindicated by Dhoni's success

Instrumental in Mahendra Singh Dhoni's elevation to captaincy of the Indian team, Sachin Tendulkar says India's rich success under the stewardship of the star stumper from Jharkhand vindicated his faith in him.

After Rahul Dravid decided to step down from the captain's job soon after India's England tour last year, Tendulkar suggested Dhoni's name to then BCCI president Sharad Pawar.

Under Dhoni, India won, among others, the Twenty20 World Cup in South Africa, tri-series in Australia, Test series against Australia at home before recording their first ODI series win in New Zealand and first Test series there in 41 years.

Refusing to disclose much about his suggestion to Pawar to appoint Dhoni as the captain, Tendulkar said, "I spoke to the BCCI president but I would not want to discuss everything publicly. As I said earlier, it's my principle that whatever happens inside dressing room should stay there."

Tendulkar, however, did not hide his satisfaction after Dhoni lived up to his expectation. "Talking about his captaincy, I'm extremely happy and delighted the way he has conducted himself," Tendulkar said.

"He is a balanced guy, is always on his toes all the time. Before he was made the captain, standing in the slips I interacted with him and picked a lot of things which clearly indicated that he has a sharp brain, his approach was pretty clear and not complicated," Tendulkar said. "I think he is doing a fantastic job."

Incidentally, Tendulkar himself struggled whenever he was saddled with captaincy.

Asked if he would love to have another go at it, the Mumbai run-machine was almost indignant. "Now what kind of question is it?" he asked.

"The team is doing so well (under Dhoni) and you should be proud of it," he admonished the person posing the query.

Tendulkar said he was rather happy playing mentor's role to younger players.

"To players like Harbhajan Singh or Yuvraj Singh, I'm like their elder brother. I share information not just with them but also with other members of the side. It's a terrific atmosphere in the dressing room and it's not just a one-way traffic," he said.

"We learn from each other and if someone has some issues, there is the coach. Generally it's a great atmosphere and I enjoy being part of this side," he added.

Tendulkar first time Man of the Match in IPL

Sachin Tendulkar was adjudged the Man of the Match for the first time in the Indian Premier League (IPL) after he led Mumbai Indians to a victory against last year's finalists Chennai Super Kings here Saturday.

Tendulkar scored his second fifty in the competition, remaining unbeaten with 59, his first fifty plus score coming May last year when he made 65 against Kings XI at the Wankhede Stadium.

The other statistical highlights of the opening match in the second edition of the IPL:

· Mumbai Indians posted their eighth victory in 15 IPL games. They have now won two out of three contested against Chennai Super Kings.

· Mumbai Indians have won two games in succession against Chennai. They had defeated Chennai by nine wickets at Wankhede Stadium on May 14, 2008 in their previous meeting.

· Lasith Malinga (3/15) has produced his career-best bowling figures in Twenty20. His figures are the best for Mumbai Indians against Chennai Super Kings, bettering the 3 for 33 by Dhawal Kulkarni at the Wankhede Stadium on May 14, 2008.

· Manpreet Gony is the leading bowler for Chennai in the IPL. His 19 wickets at an average of 25.00 in 17 matches obliterated Albie Morkel's tally of 17 at 23.47 runs apiece in 13 matches.

· Mumbai (166/7) posted their second highest total against Chennai, next only to their 202 for seven at Chennai on April 23, 2008.

· Jayasuriya has taken his run-aggregate in the IPL to 540 at an average of 41.53, surpassing Gautam Gambhir's tally of 534 in 14 innings at an average of 41.07.

· Parthiv Patel's second-ball duck is his second in the IPL. In the first edition of the IPL, he had posted a first-ball duck against Rajasthan Royals at Jaipur.

Rajasthan Royals axe Kaif, seven others

The Rajasthan Royals have axed a big name from their squad even before the IPL got underway. Mohammad Kaif has been axed from the squad along with seven other players.

They will now fly back to India. Kaif was purchased for a hefty 675,000 US dollars at the auction last year but didn't have much of a role during the victorious campaign.

Kaif had played all the matches but could manage only 176 runs at an average of just 16. He didn't make a single half century, largely because he was shunted lower down the order. The 28 year old kaif has played 13 Tests and 125 one-dayers for India so far.

Sachin Tendulkar's Wax Statue for Madame Tussauds unveiled in Mumbai

Sachin Tendulkar on Monday came face to face with himself, as a new waxwork figure of the Indian cricket legend was unveiled in his home city of Mumbai after demand from the public.

The figure has been made to go on show at London's Madame Tussauds museum and is the first of an Indian sportsman at the world famous waxwork attraction.

It shows Tendulkar, 35, in a familiar pose - in full whites of the India team, batting pads, arm guard and gloves, holding his bat and helmet aloft in celebration.

"This was the way I celebrated when I passed the record," he told a news conference, referring to the moment last October when he broke Brian Lara's record for the most runs in Test cricket.

"I saw the picture and it was a special moment, a very dear one to me."

Tendulkar, nicknamed the "Little Master" or "Master Blaster," described being immortalized in wax as a "great honors."

"It's fantastic, fabulous," he added.

Liz Edwards, from Madame Tussauds, said it was the first time one of its wax figures had been launched outside London and had been designed to coincide with the start of the Indian Premier League Twenty20 tournament this weekend.

Tendulkar captains the Mumbai Indians in the competition, which has been moved to South Africa because of a clash with India's general election.

"Guests vote for wax figures to come in. Sachin's name was constantly coming up and we were delighted to work with him," said Edwards.

Wallpapers of Sachin Tendulkar, Biography of Sachin Tendulkar

Date of Birth: April 24, 1973
Place of Birth: Mumbai
Major Teams: India, Mumbai
Batting Style: Right -Hand Batsman
Bowling Style: Right Arm Medium, Leg Break, Right Arm Off Break
ODI Debut : India v Pakistan at Gujranwala, 2nd ODI, 1989/90
Test Debut : India v Pakistan at Karachi, 1st Test, 1989/90
Height : 5'5

Early days

Born in Mumbai (then Bombay) into a middle-class family, Sachin Tendulkar was named after his family’s favourite music director Sachin Dev Burman. He went to Sharadashram Vidyamandir School where he started his cricketing career under coach Ramakant Achrekar. While at school, he was involved in a mammoth 664 run partnership in a Harris Shield game with friend and team mate Vinod Kambli. In 1988/1989, he scored 100 not-out in his first first-class match, for Bombay against Gujarat. At 15 years and 232 days he was the youngest to score a century on debut.

International career

Sachin played his first international match against Pakistan in Karachi in 1989, facing the likes of Wasim Akram, Imran Khan, Abdul Qadir, and Waqar Younis. He made just 15 runs, being bowled by Waqar Younis, who also made his debut in that match. It was an inauspicious start, but Tendulkar followed it up with his maiden Test fifty a few days later at Faisalabad. His One-day International (ODI) debut on December 18 was equally disappointing, where he was dismissed without scoring a run, again by Waqar Younis. The series was followed by a non-descript tour of New Zealand in which he fell for 88 in a Test match, John Wright, who would later coach India, pouching the catch that prevented Tendulkar from becoming the youngest centurion in Test cricket. The long anticipated maiden Test century came in England’s tour in 1990 but the other scores were not remarkable. Tendulkar truly came into his own in the 1991-1992 tour of Australia that included a brilliant century on the fast and bouncy track at Perth. He has been Man of the Match 11 times in Test matches and Man of the Series twice, both times in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy against Australia.

Highlights of Tendulkar’s Test career include:

• Rated as the second best batsman of all time (next to Don Bradman) by Wisden [1][3]

• Highest number of Test centuries (35), overtaking Sunil Gavaskar’s record (34) on 10 December 2005 vs Sri Lanka in Delhi.

• Played in the highest number of Cricket Grounds - he has played Test Cricket on 52 different grounds, ahead of Azharuddin (48), Kapil Dev (47), Inzamam-ul-Haq (46) and Wasim Akram (45).

• He is the fastest to score 10,000 runs in Test cricket history. He holds this record along with Brian Lara. Both of them achieved this feat in 195 innings.

• 4th highest tally of runs in Test cricket (10,323)

• Career Average 55.79 - Has the highest average among those who have scored over 10,000 Test runs

• Second Indian to make over 10,000 runs in Test matches.

• Has 37 Test wickets (14 Dec 2005)

• Second fastest player to reach 9000 runs (Brian Lara made 9000 in 177 innings, Sachin in 179.)

Highlights of Tendulkar’s ODI career include:

• Played more matches than any other cricketer

• Most Man of the Match (50) awards

• Appeared on the most grounds (89 different grounds)

• Most runs (14,146 as of 15th February, 2006)

• Most centuries (39)

• Most centuries vs. Australia, South Africa, New Zealand, Sri Lanka and Zimbabwe.

• First cricketer to cross 10,000-run mark in ODIs

• Only cricketer to cross 14,000-run mark in ODIs

• Only player to have over 100 innings of 50+ runs as of February, 2006

• Over 100 wickets (141 as of 15th February, 2006)

• Highest batting average among batsmen with over 10,000 ODI runs (as of March 17, 2006)

• Highest individual score among Indian batsmen (186* against New Zealand at Hyderabad in 1999)

• Holds the record for scoring 1,000 ODI runs in a calendar year. He has done it six times - 1994, 1996, 1997, 1998, 2000 and 2003.

• In 1998 he made 1,894 ODI runs, still the record for ODI runs by any batsman in any given calendar year.

• In 1998 he hit 9 ODI centuries, the highest by any player in an year.

World Cup

• Most runs (1732 at an average of 59.72) in World Cup Cricket History

• Player Of The Tournament in the 2003 Cricket World Cup.

• 673 runs in 2003 World Cup, highest by any one in a single Cricket World Cup

Miscellaneous

• Sachin Tendulkar is the first batsman to have been declared run out by a third umpire in 1992 against South Africa in South Africa.

• He was the first overseas cricketer to play for Yorkshire CCC in 1992.

• Oddly, Wisden does not include any innings by Tendulkar among its list of 100 greatest Test batting performances.