Sachin World

Fairytale Romance Of Sachin Tendulkar & Anjali!

2012-05-25T12:27:00.001+05:30

He is the greatest batsmen in the history of Indian Cricket and widely known as Master Blaster, Sachin Tendulkar, is happy to be the man, his wife, Anjali Tendulkar looks up to! It was love at first sight for the two of them and their love story was special indeed. The two of them Sachin Tendulkar and Anjali were fortunate to meet and to join their hearts into one for nearly 16 years of marriage, is a blessing.
Anjali Tendulakr, being six years older to her husband, Sachin Tendulkar, says that the age difference doesn't drift their love for each and thus being with her only made him stronger in his personal and professional life as she is always there to support him through everything.

Anjali Tendulkar, recollects the first time she fell head over heels in love with the Master Blaster, Sachin Tendulkar . The movie love story goes like this: In the year 1990, when Anjali Tendulkar went to the Mumbai airport to pick up her mother, she first saw the cricketer along with the Indian Cricket team. Having no knowledge about cricket, Anjali Tendukar really did not know the serious fame behind this icon. Later, meeting through a common friend, the two of them became close and thus began their love story which went on for five years, till they became man and wife in the year, 1995. Anjali Tendulkar states that Sachin Tendulkar has been the best husband and couldn't have asked for more. Speaking about his prestigious career, Anjali Tendulkar states that when he is on the field holding the bat in his hand, there is nothing she does, except being glued to the television set, looking at the Ganesh statue and praying hard for him not to get out. The cricketer's wife, Anjali Tendulkar, reports that she doesn't even pick up a phone call while her husband is on the crease.

On being the wife of Sachin Tendulkar, Anjali, who is pediatrician says that there is a lot of pressure from both ends, while being a mother to their two kids , Sara and Arjun and looking after her husband! Anjali herself states, “So whether I am his girlfriend or his wife, it's the same thing, just an extension of that bond. I don't find it very difficult and now I'm used to it. It could also be that I've not known any other person in my life except Sachin. Of course, there are many challenges and difficulties to being his wife but the whole family, including my children, has learnt to deal with it
A humble cricketer's wife as many say, she has even got to that extent of giving up her medical career just to maintain a balanced celeb lifestyle and supporting her family in every little and great way possible.

Sachin Tendulkar highest ranked Indian in ICC Test rankings for batsmen

2012-05-23T07:54:00.000+05:30

Sachin Tendulkar remained the highest-ranked Indian batsman at the 12th spot in the latest ICC Test charts released on Tuesday.

With 749 points to his kitty, Tendulkar shares the 12th spot with Azhar Ali of Pakistan in the batsmen's chart which is headed by West Indian Shivnarine Chanderpaul who extended his advantage over South African AB de Villiers.

Among the bowlers, Zaheer Khan and Pragyan Ojha are the only two Indians in the top-20.

A maiden 10-wicket haul by England fast bowler Stuart Broad gave him a career-best ranking of joint third after his side beat the West Indies by five wickets at Lord's to go 1-0 up in the three-Test series.

For his match haul of 11-165, Broad, who was short-listed for the 2008 ICC Emerging Player of the Year Award at the LG ICC Awards, earned 34 ratings points which not only gave him a share of third place with Anderson but also put the two fast bowlers 52 ratings points behind second-placed Saeed Ajmal of Pakistan.

With off-spinner Graeme Swann sitting in fifth position after slipping one place following his match figures of three for 111, England now has three bowlers inside the top five.

The bowlers' list is headed by South Africa's Dale Steyn.

Among batsmen, Chnaderpaul extended his advantage over de Villiers to 57 ratings points.

Chanderpaul, who lifted the Sir Garfield Sobers Trophy after being named as the 2008 ICC Cricketer of the Year, had entered the Test with a lead over de Villiers of just six ratings points and over third-ranked Jacques Kallis of eight ratings points.

However, after scores of 87 not out and 91, the 37-year-old Guyana batsman has not only consolidated his number-one raking, he is now 22 ratings points away from breaking the 900-point mark yet again, which in ranking terms is the benchmark for any batsman.

Chanderpaul last achieved a career-best rating of 901 after scoring 126 not out against New Zealand in December 2008 in Napier. (PTI)

I was just listening to Sachin and did what he said:Smith

2012-05-21T15:57:00.000+05:30

Mumbai Indians (MI) batsman Dwayne Smith, who struck a match-winning half-century against Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB), said he did not expect the emphatic 10-wicket triumph that his team managed at Jaipur.

"We had not expected such an easy victory. I won't say that there bowling was bad but we batted very well," said Smith in the post-match press conference on Sunday night.

"I had a very good partnership with Sachin(Tendulkar) and that helped us win so easily. I was just listening to Sachin and did what he said," said Smith, who played a 58-ball 87-run unbeaten knock.

"This victory has certainly given us confidence and we will carry it into the playoff tie against Chennai Super Kings on May 23 in Bangalore," said the batsman. (PTI)

Sachin help Mumbai crush Rajasthan

2012-05-21T08:00:00.000+05:30

Dwayne Smith and Sachin Tendulkar shared the highest opening stand in the Indian Premier League (IPL) to propel Mumbai Indians to a 10-wicket victory over Rajasthan Royals in the final league match of the T20 tournament here Sunday.
Smith smashed 87 off 58 balls while Tendulkar struck a fluent 58 off 51 as Mumbai overcame the target with 12 balls to spare. Medium pacer Dhawal Kulkarni (3/18) starred with the ball before his side cantered to a morale-boosting win ahead of its knock-out game against Chennai Super Kings in Bangalore Wednesday.

The 163-run partnership between the master blaster and Smith saw 16 fours besides three big ones coming from the bat of the West Indian. The memorable opening stand surpassed the effort of Chennai Super Kings' Murali Vijay and Michael Hussey, who had mad¬e 159 against Royal Challengers Bangalore in the 2011 edition.

While Mumbai had already qualified for the play-offs as the third-placed team, Royals were playing for pride after being eliminated from the competition.

Royals set-up a decent total to end their IPL-V campaign on a high but Tendulkar and Smith came up with a special performance to script Mumbai Indians' victory.

Earlier, Royals blasted 56 off the last five overs to push the score beyond 150.

The in-form opening combination of Ajinkya Rahane (13) and Rahul Dravid (5) fell cheaply, leaving the team at 32 for two in 5.2 overs.

Star all-rounder Shane Watson (45) along with Stuart Binny (30) steadied the innings with a 53-run stand.

Watson was once again at his belligerent best, hitting fours and a couple of sixes in his 36-ball innings.

Binny too was impressive during his cameo. The highlight of his innings was hammering opposition skipper Harbhajan Singh for 22 runs in the 10th over.

Owais Shah chipped in with an unbeaten 28.

Partnership Records of Sachin Tendulkar and Sourav Ganguly

2012-05-20T13:59:00.001+05:30

Like dancing, in cricket - it takes two to tango. tangos after tangos, I mean partnerships after partnerships - batsman take their team to victory. without a tango/partner - no batsman can singly win a cricket match for his team!
If a cricket team's best tango pair is at the top - the opening batsmen, even better.

Sachin Tendulkar - Right hand mumbai maestro.
Sourav Ganguly - Left hand Bangal tiger.

Team : India
Innings : 176 (136 times opening) and counting!
Total runs : 6609
Average : 49.32/innings when they open together.
Century stands : 26 times over 100 and 29 times over 50 runs for the first wicket.

Note : 40 other times when Sachin-Sourav have batted together, but not as opening pair - aggregates 1668 runs. So, total runs made between these openers is 8277 with an average of almost 48!
Man of the match : 62 awards to Sachin Tendulkar and 31 for Sourav Ganguly .

Highest : 258 (vs Kenya), 252 (vs SL), 244 (vs Namibia), 197 (vs Zimbabwe), 193 (vs South Africa), 175 (vs Australia).. thrice these two have won the match without being separated!

The first : time Sachin Tendulkar and Sourav Ganguly opened for India, was at Bloemfontein - 23rd January 1997.. Sachin was himself the captain, and Ganguly was chosen as his partner because he batted lefthanded! Sachin made 0 that day-night match against South Africa, but Ganguly went on to impress with 40 off 64, and rest is history!

An adjustment : was made between Sachin-Sourav opening partnership cause Sourav Ganguly didn't believed in fast singles. Tendulkar did. Ganguly was guilty of eating up the over while in-form Tendulkar waited at the non-strikers end.. Thankfully, only 9 runouts have occurred between this best opening pair of one day International cricket.

The gift : of both Sachin & sourav was their hunger for centuries. 49 One day centuries for Tendulkar & 22 one day centuries for Ganguly proves that an opener must know how to carry his bat through the innings & not throw his wicket for half-centuries!

Sehwag factor : The right hander from Delhi forced his way into Openers slot for India, specially for his ability to smash boundaries during powerplays. Sometimes Sourav will move down the order, sometimes Sachin batted at number 3. In all, Sehwag opened 78 times with Tendulkar, 65 times with Sourav. Averaged 38 and 42 respectively.

Sachin Wicket has to be my best in all format: Sunil Narine

2012-05-20T07:29:00.001+05:30

The turning point at the Wankhede on Wednesday night was when Sunil Narine bowled Sachin Tendulkar for 27. That put the Kolkata Knight Riders firmly on the path to an amazing win over the Mumbai Indians.

On Saturday afternoon, at the Marriott here, the soft-spoken Narine, who’d finished with four for 15 to pocket another MoM award, smiled while recalling that dismissal.

“I just bowled a normal off-break and The Master, well, misread it... Yeah, it has to be my best wicket in all formats... Getting the greatest batsman, after all,” Narine told The Telegraph.

The 23-year-old Narine has played eight ODIs and a solitary T20 International. Clearly, the Test debut can’t be too far away for this Trinidadian.

Sachin Tendulkar, Harbhajan Singh visit Kali temple

2012-05-14T10:49:00.002+05:30

Mumbai Indians' Sachin Tendulkar and Harbhajan Singh offered prayers at the city's famous shrine, Dakshineswar Kali temple, before leaving for Bangalore.

"The duo came around 8.30 am and were taken inside through the VIP gate. They were there for about 15 minutes," a temple source said.

This was Tendulkar's first visit to the city after scoring his historical 100th international century during the Asia Cup in March.

The senior India batsman always makes it a point to offer puja whenever he comes to the city.

In his last visit to Kolkata during the India vs West Indies second Test in November 2011, he had to return disappointed from the Kalighat temple.

As the news spread like wildfire, a large number of fans had surrounded his car in front of the temple and he could not alight to offer prayers.

This time, however, it was done in a hush-hush manner as nobody had a clue about the visit.

Mumbai Indians will take on Royal Challengers Bangalore in an IPL match.

Tendulkar, earlier yesterday, was felicitated jointly by the state government and hosts Cricket Association of Bengal before the Mumbai Indians match against Kolkata Knight Riders at the Eden Gardens.(PTI)

Sachin Tendulkar is a golden boy – Mamata

2012-05-13T20:19:00.000+05:30

Little master Sachin Tendulkar was portrayed as a golden boy by the west Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, as the cricket association of Bengal honored the all rounder for the completion of one hundred international centuries.

While praising on the behalf of the government, the Chief Minister told the little master that, as he is considered to be a golden boy, he is being gifted with a golden bat and ball. She also said that the state government is proud of him and salutes his achievement.

The ceremony of honor took place on Saturday at the Eden gardens just before IPL match between Kolkata Knight Riders and Mumbai Indians.

With a loud applause Sachin Tendulkar started to address the heaving crowd in Bengali by saying ‘Bhalo Achi’, he thanked the people for their love and support showered on him all these years. He then added that he will never forget the valuable memories and the pleasure he got during playing here.

Mamata Banerjee, while giving the golden bat and ball to Tendulkar also offered him a pot full of rasogollas, a famous Bengal sweet. Jag Mohan Dalmiya, Cricket Association of Bengal superior, who was present at the function, joined them when the little master was honored with gifts and a ‘Uttario’ (traditional scarf). The Chief Minister who recently recommended Tendulkar’s name for the highest pride –Bharat Ratna as the Mumbai superior achieved the goal in Dhaka.

Dalmiya presented with a souvenir to Sachin Tendulkar congratulated him for his one hundred centuries. The Eden Garden ground was fully decorated with the banner in which was written that Cricket Association of Bengal is saluting Sachin for his remarkable performance.

Jag Mohan told that this is the first time Sachin has come here after reaching the milestone; therefore we decided to honor him in a fabulous manner along with the state government. A total of 65,000 small posters were pasted to each chairs in the ground by the CAB.

Cameron auctions 'most valuable' Tendulkar bat

2012-05-13T19:32:00.000+05:30

British Prime Minister David Cameron , who considered a bat signed by Indian cricket icon Sachin Tendulkar as one of his 'most valuable possessions', has donated it to raise money for a cricket stadium in Rwanda.

The bat fetched 3,400 pounds (approx Rs 3 lakh) at an auction at the Lord's to raise funds for the stadium project, the Daily Telegraph reported.

Some days ago, at an event of the Conservative Friends of India , Cameron had spoken how he cherished the bat and Tendulkar's signature during his visit to India in 2010.

He told the Indian audience that he was horrified when he saw his wife Samantha play French cricket with the same bat at the Chequers, the prime minister's country residence, adding: "I said, 'No, darling, put it down, this is probably the most valuable possession I have.'"

The auction, held in the Long Room at Lord's, was to commemorate the life of Christopher Shale, Cameron's constituency chairman, who was found dead at the Glastonbury festival last summer.

Shale's son, Edo, said the event raised almost 130,000 pounds for the project.

"We are all delighted and a little exhausted. These funds are the springboard this charity needs to take us into the construction phase of the cricket stadium," he told.

Sachin Tendulkar is the 14th most popular athlete on Social Media

2012-02-01T13:58:00.000+05:30

Sachin Tendulkar is the 14th most popular athlete on Social Media behind Shaquile O’ Neal. Tendulkar has 7.5 million fans/followers between his Twitter and Facebook accounts. Though quite a few cricketers have a presence on Social Media, none of them made it to the list.

In fact Tendulkar is the only Indian on the list and also the lone Cricketer on the list. Not bad for a sport played by very few countries. The list is hugely dominated by Soccer followed by Basketball, Wrestling and Tennis. Snowboarding, Boxing (Floyd Mayweather Jr), Golf (Woods), Swimming (Phelps), Cricket (Tendulkar), Cycling (Armstrong), and Athletics (Usain Bolt) are the sports which had one representation each.
Courtesy visual.ly

SACHIN Tendulkar seems intent on letting his bat do the talking

2012-02-01T12:28:00.000+05:30

Cricket’s most prolific run scorer and the rest of the Indian team have arrived in Adelaide for the fourth and final test against Australia, but none was saying anything at Adelaide Airport.

Tendulkar, who has so far been unable to score his one hundredth international century this tour, stopped to pose for photographs and sign autographs for fans, but ignored the gathered media.

Tendulkar fan Oorjit Jayamand and parents Amol and Sheetal Jayamand had been waiting for the players to arrive and were happy to get the batsman’s signature.

“To see him and to get his signature is fantastic. Oorjit will keep the bat forever,” Mr Jayamand said.

Since March 2011, Tendulkar has been under pressure to become the first player to score a hundred tons, but he has been stuck on 99 since March.

India has been completely overpowered by Australia, which has won all three Tests so far to seal the series.

Adding insult to the injury of a humiliating innings and 37 run loss to Australia in Perth, Indian captain MS Dhoni has been banned from playing due to a slow over rate.

The Test starts on Tuesday.

Courtesy

Sachin Tendulkar is a 'cricket god': Hussey

2012-01-22T12:16:00.004+05:30

Completely enamoured withSachin Tendulkar in the present series, Australian batsman Michael Hussey feels it's "inevitable" that the Indian icon would get his 100th century in due course.

"He has played brilliantly. Watching him closely, his footwork, the time he has and the straight bat, both off the front and backfoot, he's playing really well. If he continues it's inevitable," said Hussey as he shaped up for the final Test at Adelaide, beginning on Tuesday.

Tendulkar hasn't got his desired 100th century from the first three Tests of the summer and his wait has only got extended to 10 Tests and 19 innings so far. But Hussey has only admiration for the iconic cricketer as described him as "cricket god" in India.

"I don't know what he is going through mentally. I haven't scored 99 centuries though I would love to be in that position and feel the pressure. I have admired him how he's gone through his whole career. To score consistently at such a long period of time, deal with external pressures is amazing.

"He is a cricket god and yet how he handles himself in India, in a cricket-mad country, where just to walk on the street means being mobbed by thousands and thousands of people...to handle all this and put it aside and perform for India for over 20 years in international cricket is just amazing," he said.

"He must be such a strong person mentally. I hope he bats well but his 100th century comes in the next series, not this one."

The Indian team is drawing criticism for what is being described as lack of intensity in training but it found unlikely support in Hussey, who said the visitors are experienced enough to do well without long net sessions.

Australia lead the ongoing four-Test series 3-0 and the Indians have been roundly criticised by former players such as Sunil Gavaskar for not being intense enough in their training sessions.

Even though Australia's practice sessions have been noticeably intense, Hussey didn't think that the Indians were lacking in any measure.

"Indian players are so experienced, they know their games so well, they know what they need to be ready. I don't feel laying down a few markers necessarily means (preparing better). It comes down to an individual (how they could) give off his best," Hussey said.

It's apparent each Australian bowler has bowled with extra zip in the nets. Hussey said it's not just the bowlers, it's the way Australians have looked to train under new coach Mickey Arthur.

"I don't know if that's the motivation. Since Mickey Arthur has taken over, there is a bit of a goal to raise the bar in training standards. The intensity, throughout this summer, has been very high.

"Whether fighting for last place or not, I expect all guys to maintain intensity."

Another Indian cricketer for whom Hussey has a lot of praise is fast bowler Ishant Sharma who he feels has bowled without luck in this series.

"Ishant, if anything, has picked up little bit in pace from some spell I've faced from him in the past. He regularly touched 150 in a few of the spells in Melbourne. He bowled with real pace, at least early in the series but he bowled without luck.

"In the first two Tests, he beat the bat on numerous occasions. But the rub of the green didn't go his way. He has bowled well, may be 50-50 things haven't gone his way. Sometimes such things shape a series," he said.

"I hope that continues for one more Test. He's an outstanding bowler and I truly mean it, both with the new and old ball. I'm sure he's going to come back pretty hard in this Test," Hussey added.

Australians have prepared well for Ishant with batting coach Justin Langer standing up on a height and bowling to batsmen in order to simulate the style of Ishant.

Bowling coach Craig McDermott has laid down markers to make the bowlers bowl in good length areas in the nets.

"Each coach has his own ideas he has picked up along on his journey. Sometimes players also give their inputs. For example, the marker thing is from McDermott. (Michael) Clarke has suggested Langer stands on a stool little higher (from the ground)."

Hussey has no doubt that the Test in Adelaide would go longer than the previous ones which didn't last the five days but wasn't prepared to predict what the kind of surface it could turn out to be.

"The ideal scenario of course is to win the Test. But we are aware there's lot of hard work for it's a pretty good pitch. Having said so, there's a little more grass than in previous years. I still think the pitch would play well and the Test would go longer than WACA anyway," he said.

"It certainly does on first morning, the first session and then generally it's a good batting pitch for a few days. (Early hours) is a crucial time for openers but then good runs can be had. It's very crucial part of the game. In many ways, the first hour, the first session could shape the Test.

"I don't know what the team is, no bowlers know it. It's a tough choice for selectors. I would think Lyon to be back but in Perth we played with four quicks and there's more grass here. So you never know, we might stick to the winning formula," he added.

Reverse swing can be a factor in Adelaide and Ben Hilfenhaus, Australia's go-to bowler this summer, is ideally suited to exploit it.

"With a lower-arm action, you could have a reverse swing to good effect. Traditionally, Adelaide Oval is a good batting wicket. But what's a good ball in WACA or SCG is also in Adelaide. As long as you keep the pressure and are prepared to do over a long period of time."

There's a feeling that Australia could be back to their dominating days of 90s and 2000s when they were the most dominating team in world cricket.

"Definitely, there's a quality in our bowling. Last year we were frustrated we weren't able to apply pressure on England.

"This year the bowling has been outstanding. I know Indian batsmen have copped up a fair bit of criticism but credit is also due to our bowling unit. The amount of pressure they have applied, a good ball after good ball, hour after hour, session after session at end, has been the difference between winning and dominating the series."

But Hussey still wasn't prepared to rate his side as the best in the world already.

"There certainly is confidence but we aren't there yet. There's a lot of work to do. But we are going in right direction, the focus is clear and we are prepared to work hard. It still is a work in progress."

That's the way batting goes. Sometimes you are playing well but one ball, one mistake and you are back to the pavilion. I am sure to his own mind he is batting well, his bat is as broad as ever at the moment," Hussey added.

Tendulkar hasn't got his desired 100th century from the first three Tests of the summer and his wait has only got extended to 10 Tests and 19 innings so far. But Hussey has only admiration for the iconic cricketer as described him as "cricket god" in India.

"I don't know what he is going through mentally. I haven't scored 99 centuries though I would love to be in that position and feel the pressure. I have admired him how he's gone through his whole career. To score consistently at such a long period of time, deal with external pressures is amazing.

"He is a cricket god and yet how he handles himself in India, in a cricket-mad country, where just to walk on the street means being mobbed by thousands and thousands of people...to handle all this and put it aside and perform for India for over 20 years in international cricket is just amazing," he said.

"He must be such a strong person mentally. I hope he bats well but his 100th century comes in the next series, not this one."

The Indian team is drawing criticism for what is being described as lack of intensity in training but it found unlikely support in Hussey, who said the visitors are experienced enough to do well without long net sessions.

Australia lead the ongoing four-Test series 3-0 and the Indians have been roundly criticised by former players such as Sunil Gavaskar for not being intense enough in their training sessions.

Even though Australia's practice sessions have been noticeably intense, Hussey didn't think that the Indians were lacking in any measure.

"Indian players are so experienced, they know their games so well, they know what they need to be ready. I don't feel laying down a few markers necessarily means (preparing better). It comes down to an individual (how they could) give off his best," Hussey said.

It's apparent each Australian bowler has bowled with extra zip in the nets. Hussey said it's not just the bowlers, it's the way Australians have looked to train under new coach Mickey Arthur.

"I don't know if that's the motivation. Since Mickey Arthur has taken over, there is a bit of a goal to raise the bar in training standards. The intensity, throughout this summer, has been very high.

"Whether fighting for last place or not, I expect all guys to maintain intensity."

Another Indian cricketer for whom Hussey has a lot of praise is fast bowler Ishant Sharma who he feels has bowled without luck in this series.

"Ishant, if anything, has picked up little bit in pace from some spell I've faced from him in the past. He regularly touched 150 in a few of the spells in Melbourne. He bowled with real pace, at least early in the series but he bowled without luck.

"In the first two Tests, he beat the bat on numerous occasions. But the rub of the green didn't go his way. He has bowled well, may be 50-50 things haven't gone his way. Sometimes such things shape a series," he said.

"I hope that continues for one more Test. He's an outstanding bowler and I truly mean it, both with the new and old ball. I'm sure he's going to come back pretty hard in this Test," Hussey added.

Australians have prepared well for Ishant with batting coach Justin Langer standing up on a height and bowling to batsmen in order to simulate the style of Ishant.

Bowling coach Craig McDermott has laid down markers to make the bowlers bowl in good length areas in the nets.

"Each coach has his own ideas he has picked up along on his journey. Sometimes players also give their inputs. For example, the marker thing is from McDermott. (Michael) Clarke has suggested Langer stands on a stool little higher (from the ground)."

Hussey has no doubt that the Test in Adelaide would go longer than the previous ones which didn't last the five days but wasn't prepared to predict what the kind of surface it could turn out to be.

"The ideal scenario of course is to win the Test. But we are aware there's lot of hard work for it's a pretty good pitch. Having said so, there's a little more grass than in previous years. I still think the pitch would play well and the Test would go longer than WACA anyway," he said.

"It certainly does on first morning, the first session and then generally it's a good batting pitch for a few days. (Early hours) is a crucial time for openers but then good runs can be had. It's very crucial part of the game. In many ways, the first hour, the first session could shape the Test.

"I don't know what the team is, no bowlers know it. It's a tough choice for selectors. I would think Lyon to be back but in Perth we played with four quicks and there's more grass here. So you never know, we might stick to the winning formula," he added.

Reverse swing can be a factor in Adelaide and Ben Hilfenhaus, Australia's go-to bowler this summer, is ideally suited to exploit it.

"With a lower-arm action, you could have a reverse swing to good effect. Traditionally, Adelaide Oval is a good batting wicket. But what's a good ball in WACA or SCG is also in Adelaide. As long as you keep the pressure and are prepared to do over a long period of time."

There's a feeling that Australia could be back to their dominating days of 90s and 2000s when they were the most dominating team in world cricket.

"Definitely, there's a quality in our bowling. Last year we were frustrated we weren't able to apply pressure on England.

"This year the bowling has been outstanding. I know Indian batsmen have copped up a fair bit of criticism but credit is also due to our bowling unit. The amount of pressure they have applied, a good ball after good ball, hour after hour, session after session at end, has been the difference between winning and dominating the series."

But Hussey still wasn't prepared to rate his side as the best in the world already.

"There certainly is confidence but we aren't there yet. There's a lot of work to do. But we are going in right direction, the focus is clear and we are prepared to work hard. It still is a work in progress."

Sachin Tendulkar Only Indian Batsman in the Top 10 ICC test rankings

2012-01-20T19:54:00.001+05:30

Sachin Tendulkar remained static at ninth in the batting list, while Zaheer Khanslipped a rung to occupy the same position in the bowling charts in the latest ICC Test rankings released on Friday.

The duo are the only Indians inside top 10 of the batting and bowling lists.

Elsewhere, off-spinner Saeed Ajmal has become world's highest-ranked spinner after bowlingPakistan to a 10-wicket win over number-one ranked England in the first Test which ended in three days in Dubai.

Kevin Pietersen has fallen out of the top 10. Pietersen, who scored two and zero in the DubaiTest, has lost six places and is now in 16th position while England captain Andrew Strauss has also dropped six places to 34th spot.

The only England batsmen to make any upward movements are wicketkeeper Matt Prior in 18th (up by one) and Swann in 64th (up by 11).

In contrast, the Pakistan batsmen have made positive gains with Younus Khan in fourth (up by two), captain Misbah-ul-Haq in 14th (up by three), Mohammad Hafeez in 30th (up by 15), Taufeeq Umar in 32nd (up by six) and wicketkeeper Adnan Akmal in 70th (up by 23).

Former Sri Lanka captain Kumar Sangakkara leads the field while South Africa's Jacques Kallis is just four ratings points behind in second position. AB de Villiers is third, 24 ratings points ahead of Younus.

Video-Sachin 1st ODI Century

2012-01-18T11:35:00.000+05:30

Sachin Tendulkar got his first one day international century after playing 78 matches and five years of international cricket.

People were beginning to wonder whether he will ever get to the three figure mark but on September 9, 1994 he silenced all his critics with a masterly 110 against Australia at the Premadasa Stadium in Colombo in the Singer Cup. His hundred helped India to win a match which was a do or die encounter for them as they had lost the previous match to Sri Lanka. Sachin's hundred helped India to a good total batting first and they ended up winning the match by a handsome margin. They also ended up winning the tournament beating Sri Lanka in the final. Sachin Tendulkar is a huge follower of Lord Ganesha (the Elephant God so widely worshipped in India) and that day happened to be Ganesh Chaturthi, may be that might have had something to do with his first one day hundred.

Sachin Tendulkar's elusive ton keeps bookies busy

2012-01-18T09:11:00.000+05:30

Believe it or not, people have made good money from master blaster Sachin Tendulkar's attempt to hit the 100th century in his cricketing career. At the same time, others have also lost lakhs of rupees to bookies every time Tendulkar fails to reach the magical figure of 100 runs.

Every time Tendulkar is seen with his bat on the field, the bookies get ready with a fresh rate to bet on his century bid. The current rate for Tendulkar's chances of scoring 100 is Rs4.30, the highest-ever in the recent past.

"His being out of form continuously over a period of time, along with the poor shape of Team India, has drastically brought down the chances of his 100th century, at least in the current situation," a bookie told DNA.

The higher the rate, the lower are the chances of getting the century. "The rate before the beginning of the second Test against Australia was Rs4, and it increased to Rs4.30 in the third Test," the source said.

"Earlier, the punters bet largely on Tendulkar's century when the rate opened with Re1 to Rs1.5 for his success," the bookie said. Many people bet on him and lost a huge amount to the bookies. The rate, however, gradually increased to Rs4.30 by the end of the last Test match against Australia in Perth.

"The chances of Tendulkar making his 100th century are decreasing and so the rate is expected to even go up," the bookie said. The rates start dipping every time Tendulkar crosses 50-run mark. "For instance, the rate opens at Rs2 for his success, it decreases as he gets closer to his century and the number of punters keeps increasing," he said.

However, the bookies are also making good money from Tendulkar's 50-run mark. "The current rate of his making 50 runs is Rs1.25; it was 50 paise before a few days," the bookie said.

The bookies believe that it is very easy for Tendulkar to score a 50 but, currently, it seems it is very difficult for him to get a hundred.

© DNA

Video: Australian names son after Indian maestro Sachin Tendulkar

2012-01-17T22:02:00.001+05:30

An Australian fan of Sachin Tendulkar has named his son after the Indian batting maestro. Sachin Parker is just five and prefers to be called as Sachin Tendulkar.
Sachin Tendulkar is widely regarded as one of the greatest batsmen in the history of cricket. He is the leading run-scorer and century maker in Test and one-day international cricket. He is also the first male player to score a double century in ODI cricket.

In 2002, just 12 years into his career, Wisden ranked him the second greatest Test batsman of all time, behind Donald Bradman, and the second greatest one-day-international (ODI) batsman of all time, behind Viv Richards.

Tendulkar was an integral part of the 2011 Cricket World Cup winning Indian team at the later part of his career, his first such win in six World Cup appearances for India.

Sachin Tendulkar’s 100th Ton Should Be In A Winning Cause : Gambhir

2012-01-17T18:37:00.002+05:30

Adelaide: Taking responsibility for not giving the Indian team a good start in the series against Australia, opener Gautam Gambhir said the players deserved the criticism from the fans.“We have not played well. If you want to be number 1 we have to start winning series. Whatever backlash is happening back home, we accept it. We have let the nation down. Hopefully we can turn it around,” Gambhir said.

Calling the series a “disappointing” one for India, the left-hander said: “I don’t think things have gone our way but we will hope that we are positive.”

He also said that the team would want to win the Adelaide Test as they “want to take a win going into the ODI series”.

Rejecting the hype around Sachin Tendulkar’s hundredth hundred, Gambhir said that the objective of the team was to win the series.

“The objective was to win the series. If Sachin scored his 100th 100 and we lost, we would not have been happy.”

“Australia is always a tough place to win. We should not be hesitant to give credit to the opposition. They always kept us on the hook,” he said.

Gambhir also defended VVS Laxman, who has been struggling badly on this tour and suggestions are being made that he should call it quits.

“Why criticize one person? Why look at only VVS? He has been a legend. Nobody should decide on his retirement. Only he should,” Gambhir said.

According to Gambhir, Wriddhiman Saha, who would be keeping wickets in the absence of MS Dhoni as the Indian skipper is serving a one Test match ban for slow over-rate, is excited about start. Virender Sehwag will be leading the side.

© NDTV

Lara backs Tendulkar to score his 100th international ton

2012-01-16T19:15:00.002+05:30

West Indian batting legend Brian Lara has backed Sachin Tendulkar to get to his 100th Indian batting legend Brian Lara has backed Sachin Tendulkar to get to his 100th international century mark.Speaking to reporters here, Lara said it was only a matter of time before Sachin got to the near-impossible landmark and advised Indian cricket fans and media to be patient.Unfortunately in Test cricket people are going to come at you as you are not playing against guys who are going to give up.
He gets a good delivery or little lapse in concentration, things that happen and the opposition is there, they know fully well that maybe they don’t want him to score that against them,” said Lara.

“Sachin is a great player and obviously if he wanted to score against the West Indies he would have played the one-day series, but he is going to score and we have to wait and appreciate it,” he added.

Cricket pundits believe that the pressure of getting to the landmark is weighing on Tendulkar who has twice come close to the elusive ton, but was dismissed on 91 against England and 94 against West Indies in consecutive Test series.

The Indian batting great, with 51 Test centuries and 48 in one-day internationals, needs one more to complete 100 international hundreds.

The West Indies southpaw also came to the rescue of under-fire Indian captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni who has been receiving a lot of flak for the Indian team’s abysmal performance in the on-going test series against Australia.

Lara said that to put the entire blame on Dhoni for Indian team’s failure Down Under was not fair, as everyone needed to share the blame for the poor show.

“I think you should give him a chance. Obviously, what happened in England and what’s currently happening in Australia, no Indian would be happy with the situation, but I believe they have to take everything in context and find out if you have the right team,” Lara added.

Dhoni, facing stiff criticism for his defensive tactics on the field, on Thursday had hinted at retiring from test cricket by the end of 2013, to prepare for the 2015 World Cup.

Sensational catch by sachin Tendulkar

2012-01-15T15:48:00.001+05:30

Sensational catch by sachin Tendulkar.

Sachin to play ODI cricket after nearly a year

2012-01-14T12:14:00.001+05:30

Batting maestro Sachin Tendulkar will finally make his return to one-day cricket in the forthcoming triangular series (starting Feb 5) featuring India, Australia and Sri Lanka Down Under, it is learnt.
Rest and injury concerns prevented Tendulkar from figuring in 50-over cricket after India clinched the ICC World Cup on April 2, 2011.

The national selection committee headed by Krishnamachari Srikkanth will only be informed about Tendulkar's availability for the tri-series by the team management when the selectors meet tomorrow.

Tendulkar has played in 453 one-day internationals and has scored 18,111 runs over a 22-year period. India won the tri-series by beating a strong Australian team in a best of three finals system in 2007-08. They did not need a third final to achieve their first success in this competition which they earlier participated in 1980-81, 1985-86, 1991-92, 1999-2000 and 2003-04. However, India under Sunil Gavaskar claimed the World Championship of Cricket in 1985.

YUVRAJ RULED OUT: Meanwhile, Yuvraj Singh has been ruled out of the one-day tri-series to be played in Australia following the ongoing Test series, reported ESPNcricinfo. Yuvraj, it is learnt, has yet to fully recover from the non-malignant lung tumour which kept him out of the team since the home ODIs against West Indies.

Economist rates Tendulkar ahead of Bradman

2012-01-13T21:27:00.002+05:30

An economist has rated iconic batsman Sachin Tendulkar ahead of Sir Don Bradman on the basis of a ranking system that uses the economic concepts of "supernormal profit" and awards players for "consistent super performance and longevity".

Dr Nicholas Rohde, an economist from Griffith University, has used "economic" concepts of "supernormal profit" and "opportunity cost" in his study to come up with a new ranking system to compare players across time.

Supernormal profit, in this case, refers to the extra runs a player scores that would not be scored in his absence, while opportunity cost means the expected batting average of the next-best player, the one who would replace him if he fell out of form.

"According to Rohde, because Tendulkar has consistently outscored his potential replacement across more innings, he is actually more valuable, in aggregate, than Bradman," a report in Sydney Morning Herald said.

"The system awards players for consistent super performance and longevity. On an innings-per-innings basis, Rohde says Bradman is much more valuable than any other player (Bradman averaged a remarkable 99.94 runs per innings.

Tendulkar presently averages 56.03).

"But Tendulkar has played so well, and for far more innings than Bradman (Bradman played in only 52 matches, Sachin has just started his 187th) that it has so far worked in Tendulkar's favour," it said.

Rohde's method takes the total number of runs a player scored in his career and subtracts the amount that a hypothetical "replacement player" would have scored in the same number of innings.

The "performance" of the replacement player depends on the average performance of all top batsmen of the era except the player in question.

Thus, the replacement player's "absolute value" adjusts over time to account for changes in the game, allowing players to be compared across time.

Photos-Sachin Tendulkar in action on Day 1 of the WACA Test

2012-01-13T16:48:00.000+05:30

Complete Picture Gallery of Sachin Tendulkar During day one of the third test at the WACA in Perth, Australia on Wednesday, Jan. 13, 2012. The Indians were not at all caught hopping on the WACA track rather the demons of WACA got the better off the batsmen’s skill. Australia played the game of cricket according to the script and India got pummeled with the mind games.
Photo courtesy Day life,Getty images,Afp,Ap.

Sachin Tendulkar practices batting out of crease at WACA

2012-01-12T21:20:00.002+05:30

HE hasn't become the worlds greatest run-scorer by doing the norm, and Sachin Tendulkar illustrated his intentions to surprise Australia in the Perth Test by practicing a metre out of his crease.

While the rest of his Indian teammates settled well into their creases and played largely off the back foot during yesterday's net session, Tendulkar played only off the front foot in a sign of taking the bowling head on.

As he lined up alongside three other of India's batsmen, Tendulkar was at least a metre in front while practicing against a bowling machine, indicating that he will attempt to throw Australias pacemen off their length.

The notoriously bouncy WACA pitch has undone the best in the game, particularly because of its volatile spring off the grass.

During a short and sharp session, only one ball slid past his bat following an attempted wide drive, and at that Tendulkar thrust his head back and yelled to the heavens in frustration.Otherwise, he was a man with a plan and stuck to it diligently, leaving five balls in succession without qualms.

As soon as a delivery landed in his path, however, Tendulkar surged forward and punched the ball with a ramrod-straight bat, holding his position after the stroke to emphasise the point.

Searching for his elusive 100th international century since March last year, Tendulkar has been weighed down by the milestone but nevertheless is still the best performed Indian batsman on this tour.
© heraldsun

Sachin Tendulkar sets fastest lap in go-karting session

2012-01-12T18:37:00.001+05:30

Sachin Tendulkar is undoubtedly the master with the bat, but on Tuesday he showed his prowess behind the wheel, setting the fastest lap during Team India’s go-karting session at the Kart World Belmont in Perth.

The Indian team took time off from their cricketing activities to go-karting ahead of their third Test against Australia, starting January 13.Sachin Tendulker showed his prowess behind the wheel as he had fastest lap time on the night, with the rest of the team close on his bumper,” Stanka Kukova, the Events Coordinator was quoted saying in ‘Daily Mail News’.

“Tendulkar, like the rest of the team was very polite and seemed to thoroughly enjoy himself. He had the fastest lap time of the day and was declared the winner. All of the team were happy to sign autographs."

“Fifteen people raced (Vice-captain Virender Sehwag, Rahul Dravid, VVS Laxman, Ravichandran Ashwin, Zaheer Khan and Abhimanyu Mithun were the absentees), this was a mix of team members and staff. They enjoyed the trip and were very polite and in good spirits. They asked a lot of questions about the go karts and the best strategies to win the races, however they did not say very much on the topic of cricket. They did ask if we would be coming down to see watch the Perth Test,” Kukova said.

“Some unkind folks have made comments that the team should be practicing in the nets rather than having a little relaxation. We say that in the big scheme of things they can spend all day in the nets or in the field so what if they take an hour or so off for a little R&R. The rest will do more good than harm and may well help refocus the team as go karting while fun is still competitive!” she concluded.

Tendulkar relaxed in chase of 100th ton

2012-01-12T08:57:00.003+05:30

With his 100th international ton continuing to elude him, Indian great Sachin Tendulkar remains a relaxed figure, according to his team-mate Rahul Dravid.

Tendulkar is aiming to notch his century of centuries during the third Test against Australia at the WACA Ground, starting on Friday.And although the little master has come close this series - posting scores of 73, 32, 41 and 80 - Dravid said the pressure wasn't getting to him.

"It's not spoken about much in the group at all - actually not at all," Dravid said.

"He's been pretty relaxed about it.

"He got 90 in Bombay and then I think he was 70 and 80 in the last two games, so obviously from his point of view, I'm sure he knows he's batting well enough to complete it.

"So I guess it'd be great if he can do it here for us.

"But I think the heartening thing for him in the back of his mind is that he's been batting beautifully over the last two or three games."

With plenty of pace and bounce predicted for the WACA wicket, Australia are still toying with the idea of unleashing four pacemen at the expense of spinner Nathan Lyon.

Former Australian skipper Ricky Ponting said he was pleased to hear the WACA was getting back to the characteristics that defined it in the 1970s and '80s.

"As Australian players growing up on fast and bouncy pitches, this is the fastest and bounciest wicket in the world and we should be able to adapt to these conditions a bit quicker than the Indians," Ponting said.

"We all enjoy playing here. The last few Tests we've played at the WACA, it's starting to get some of its old characteristics again.

"The pace and bounce are certainly coming back.

"One thing I've always been very protective of in Australia is the use of drop-in wickets.

"A lot of (state) associations have been under pressure to have drop-in wickets.

"As soon as you start getting drop-in wickets, then the characteristics of each ground are gone.

"The last thing you'd want to see at the WACA is to come and play cricket on a slow, dead, docile pitch. It's not what cricket is supposed to be like here in WA."
© SMH