Sachin Tendulkar can never be far away from cricket, whether watching the India vs South Africa one-dayer at the Wankhede, training at the MCA stadium (BKC) in preparation for the Twenty20 All-Star Series or just talking about the game.
The batting maestro, excited about renewing links with former colleagues and international rivals in the three-match series to be played next month in the United States, spoke about the need to be patient with Team India.
South Africa won the T20 games against India, followed by the five-match ODI series and now both teams are gearing for a five-match Test series. Two days after watching India outclassed by the visitors in a day/night game at the Wankhede, he was confident of the team’s ability to bounce back.
“We have a very good team. Each team will go through phases, there will be patches where you will play well, there will be phases where things will get really difficult,” said Tendulkar.
“It doesn’t mean that every weekend you pass a judgement on your team. When they do well you say ‘wow they have done well’, the following week you start criticising them. I think we need to show more balance. I understand we all are passionate about cricket and need to patient also.”
The Wankhede ODI was marred by an argument between Ravi Shastri, Team Director, and curator Sudhir Naik, the latter filing a written complaint against the abuse meted out with the Mumbai Cricket Association. The BCCI has promised to look into the matter.
Responding to a query about the Indian team management trying to influence the pitch preparation and the fallout, Tendulkar said: “I don’t know what Ravi [Shastri] spoke to the curator.”
Tendulkar is of the view that South Africa batted really well. “I wouldn’t want to take away the credit away from Quinton de Kock, Faf du Plessis and A.B. de Villiers. I thought de Villiers batted really well. If you see the first 20 balls he faced, I still remember I was watching a little bit, Shaun Pollock kept saying he has not shifted to sixth and seventh gear. It was rightly so, he has figured out how to pace his innings and did it beautifully. I would give credit to the way he batted.”
The T20 All-Star Series is his focus now, starting with fitness and nets. He is excited at the concept and wants to do his best to promote cricket in a new land. “We are all retired cricketers, we want to enjoy and promote cricket. We want to get competitive as much as we can, as much as the body allows us to be. So it’s about having fun, getting our fans closer to us, giving them an opportunity to watch live cricket, get more engaged with cricket.”
When they do well you say, ‘wow, they have done well’, the following week you start criticising them. I think we need to show more balance