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Sunil Gavaskar has cited how Sachin Tendulkar used to prepare for a Test series while criticising the current India cricketers who skipped domestic cricket.
Sachin Tendulkar retired as the most prolific batter in international cricket history. (AFP Photo)
Sunil Gavaskar has schooled the current lot of Indian cricketers by pointing out the industriousness of batting legend Sachin Tendulkar who left no stone unturned when preparing for stiff challenges. Recalling the 1998 home series against Australia, Gavaskar pointed out how Tendulkar played in a warm-up fixture while representing Mumbai against the visitors in which he scored a double-century.
Tendulkar then also practiced playing the slog sweep by roughening up the area around the wicket to gear up for his challenge against spin wizard Shane Warne.
Gavaskar’s comments have come when there’s increased scrutiny over Indian stars including Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli after their below-par performances in the recent two Test series against Bangladesh and New Zealand at home.
The Indian batter’s struggles, especially against the spinners, have been widely criticised with the top stars being slated for skipping domestic cricket which could have helped in their preparations for the home season.
“That’s the reason why Sachin Tendulkar was Sachin Tendulkar,” Gavaskar was quoted as saying by India Today. “He was so fiercely proud of what he could do and what he wanted to do for the team. Don’t forget the 200 at the Brabourne Stadium for Ranji champions Mumbai and the visiting Australian team.”
“Then when he went to Chennai, he asked Laxman Sivaramakrishnan to come and go around the wicket, create a rough around that area so that he could practise that slog sweep and the inside out shot against Shane Warne,” he added.
India didn’t play any Test cricket for nearly six months and the likes of Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja chose to not play in the Duleep Trophy, a red-ball competition, that was scheduled right before the Bangladesh Tests.
“So that is the kind of preparation why Sachin Tendulkar has got almost 16,000 runs in Test cricket and 100 international centuries. So, I think that is the kind of preparation that everybody needs to do. If you don’t do it then the gaps that are there will always be that little body speed and back speed situation, which takes a long time to get back,” Gavaskar said.
“So it is not just in cricket. It is in any sport. You look at tennis, those who are in their thirties, and then they suddenly take a break. If it’s an injury break, it’s even worse. If it’s not an injury break and it’s just to refresh themselves, when they come back, it’s very, very difficult to win tournaments after that,” he added.
