Mumbai: If you count the first Test between Sri Lanka and Bangladesh currently on at Galle, there have been 2586 instalments of the ‘purest’ format. Now consider this. Sachin Tendulkar and James Anderson, the two ornaments of Indian and English
cricket, respectively, and the two most capped players in the history of Test cricket, have played in 388 of them, making it 15% of all those Tests played.
Should it come as a surprise then that the prize for winning the series between India and England is the Anderson-Tendulkar trophy?
The BCCI and the ECB, some time ago, chose to retire the Pataudi Trophy, the original name for the series, sparking criticism from Indian legends Sunil Gavaskar and Kapil Dev and the late Nawab of Pataudi, Mansur Ali Khan’s wife, Sharmila Tagore.
Go Beyond The Boundary with our YouTube channel. SUBSCRIBE NOW! Tendulkar, while being happy with the honour, though was not too comfortable with the Pataudi name not being incorporated. “This is a different trophy, I'm told, which is being named after Anderson and me,” Tendulkar told TOI from London on Thursday, hours before the official unveiling of the trophy.
“It just reflects our contribution to our respective nations and Test cricket,” he adds and reveals he consulted the Pataudi family to share his thoughts.
“My first phone call was to the Pataudi family. I told them I’ve always respected my seniors. I wanted to keep Tiger Pataudi’s legacy alive,” he said.
It prompted Tendulkar to get into meetings with ICC President Jay Shah, the BCCI, and the ECB to find the right options to honour Pataudi. “As Tiger Pataudi was known for his leadership, we came up with the idea to introduce the Pataudi Medal of Excellence for the winning captain. I informed the family about it. So now, we have a new trophy and have kept the legacy of the great man alive,” revealed Tendulkar.
The latest honour is another jewel in Tendulkar’s well populated crown, in terms of accolades. England has always been special to him. The first of his 100 international hundreds came at Old Trafford, Manchester, in 1990. He also went past Sir Donald Bradman’s tally of 29 Test hundreds at Leeds, the venue of Friday’s first Test, in 2002. In 1992, Tendulkar also became Yorkshire’s first overseas signing, when he was still only 19.
Tendulkar considers his stint at Yorkshire educational. “It was a bold move, and people were extremely nice to me. It played an integral part in shaping me as a cricketer in terms of playing in conditions one is not familiar with,” he stresses.
And these unfamiliar conditions make fans guarded in terms of their optimism as to how the Shubman-Gill-led side will fare in the five-match series. But Tendulkar sounded positive. “This team is talented, and they will do something special if batters can put runs on the board.”
What are the technical adjustments needed though to put those runs on the board? Tendulkar himself made many to score 1575 runs in 17 Tests in England to average 54.31 with four tons and eight 50s, with his 122 at Edgbaston in 1996 being a clinic in terms of dominance amidst doldrums as the next best score was 18.
“One must quickly pick the length,” he asserts. “Everyone keeps talking about the line, but I think the length becomes even more important because in these conditions your hands need to be close to your body,” he explains.
The maestro feels an impeccable forward defence is a non-negotiable for a batter in England. “When you're playing on the front foot, the hands need to be close to the body, so the forward defence becomes critical. If the batters can defend well on the front foot against fast bowlers and not let their hands go away, they stand a better chance of being successful,” he explains.
An attacking batter by instinct, Tendulkar says a forward defence, essayed authoritatively can also scream intent. “A good solid defence need not convey to the team that it's a defensive approach. You can defend positively. And when there is a ball to be attacked, one should put that ball away,” he suggests.
Thoughts veered quickly to the man who the other half of the trophy is named after, James Anderson. Tendulkar and Anderson have crossed swords 14 times in Tests with the Lancastrian swing and seam maestro having the better of those exchanges, dismissing Tendulkar a record nine times.
Tendulkar says the first time he heard about Anderson was from Nasser Hussain. “Nasser had spoken highly about him. But I don't think Nasser would have thought that he's talking about someone who's going to end up getting 700-plus Test wickets and play for such a long time. That doesn't happen on its own. It requires commitment, focus, discipline, sacrifice. All these things must come together to have such a magnificent career.”
What made Anderson such a tricky customer though? “His wrist position and constant desire to evolve,” explains Tendulkar.
Elaborating on Anderson’s skill sets, Tendulkar says, “Every outing, he was able to introduce something new. The wrist position allowed him to bowl terrific reverse swing. With the new ball, he was anyway dangerous. But because of his wrist position and the ability to use the shine, he brought in subtle variations to help him move the ball just enough to take the edge or beat the bat. The pitch didn't matter,” he praises.
Comparing Anderson with his other great rival, Aussie legend Glenn McGrath, Tendulkar says, “McGrath bowled on different surfaces and hit the deck with the Kookaburra ball. Anderson bowled most of his career with the Duke ball. In English conditions, your hand needs to be behind the ball rather than on the ball to put more backspin on it. In Australian conditions, your hand needs to be marginally on top of the ball where you can hit the deck hard.”
Apart from an exciting India series, Tendulkar is also hopeful of catching another Alcaraz-Sinner classic on the lawns of SW19 during his annual sojourn to Wimbledon. The French Open final has whetted his appetite for more.
“I’m hoping that this time also they can produce something special. The tennis world is waiting for that, and so am I. Such rivalries create memories that stay with us forever.”
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