Little Master looks to set record straight
Lord's, first Test: England v India (19th - 23rd July)
SACHIN Tendulkar has vowed to end two decades of hurt at the home of cricket and "make the most of" his final Test appearance at Lord's.
Tendulkar, just like contemporaries Ricky Ponting and Muttiah Muralitharan, has yet to get his name on the honours board at Lord's, and the Indian believes it's now or never as he looks to right this wrong.
"It looks like this is going to be my last England tour," he said on the eve of the first Test. "It's extremely special to be out in the middle at Lord's and one would want to make the most of it."
The Test century record holder - 37 tons in 137 games - has endured a poor run of scores at Lord's, averaging under 20 with 31 his best effort in three previous outings dating back to the early nineties.
But for the pride of Mumbai, the love affair with St John's Wood hasn't waned. "It's an extremely special ground for me," added the 34 year old.
"The first time I ever saw Lord's on television was when India were in the 1983 World Cup final. I was only 10 and didn't really know what was happening, but I joined in all the celebrations even though I was too young to understand it.
"I also remember visiting here as a 14-year-old kid and I had a photo of myself taken sat next to the sight screen at the Nursery End - as a kid you have big dreams and one of them was to be out there and play.
"This is a ground where all the batters dream of getting a hundred and I'm no different."
Also looking to fill their boots on their farewell tours to England are fellow middle-order veterans VVS Laxman, Saurav Ganguly and captain Rahul Dravid.
Dravid said: "We're really not too concerned about whether it's the final tour or not, there is no additional pressure on us.
"Every time you play for your country there's pressure and responsibility that comes with it.
"I'm not looking too much into the future, just the next three Test matches."
Listen live to full coverage of every day of the first Test on
BBC Radio 4 198LW from 11:00am.
posted by Shamik Das at 9:18 PM
2 Comments:
Little master went out LBW to Monty! He was the master 10 years ago, but he pails in comparison to pieterson.
22 July, 2007 21:51
KP's on fire at the moment! The six to take him to 99 was unbelievable. Sadly Sachin has again failed on the biggest stage, but he'll be back!
I think we need to wait until Pietersen's hit 37 tons before claiming he's a better batsman than Tendulkar; I certainly wouldn't rule it out, I just wish he'd keep his mouth shut and stop bad mouthing South Africa all the time.
23 July, 2007 12:44
Post a Comment
<< Home