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Robert Croft believes Indian legend Sachin Tendulkar has to be considered the ‘greatest’ as he prepares to bow out of Test cricket.
Tendulkar will play his 200th Test match on Thursday to become the first player to complete a double century of matches in the five-day game.
At
the age of 40, and a day short of the 24th anniversary of his first Test appearance, Tendulkar will begin his farewell international match against the West Indies in Mumbai.
The
Indian is the highest run scorer in international cricket with 15,847 in 199 Tests and 18,426 in 463 one-day internationals, averaging over 53.
“It is always difficult to say who is the greatest but he’s certainly among the elite,” said Croft.
“Of my generation I would say he was just about the best.
“You had someone like the brilliant Brian Lara, but you are splitting hairs and it’s just been a privilege to watch him perform.
“As well as his remarkable talent, most people will have a common admiration for accepting the pressure of a nation.
“We are not just talking about a small country. We are talking about India and more than a billion people.
“He has absorbed that pressure in a gentlemanly manner.
“It would have been very easy for him to walk away from the game a lot sooner than this.
“But his appetite for the game does not seem to have wavered from when he made his Test debut at 16.”
Croft
has recalled the first time he came up against the man they call the ‘Little Master’ when Glamorgan faced India in a tour match in Swansea in
1990.
The former England spinner eventually dismissed Tendulkar for 68 with Tony Cottey taking the catch from a full toss.
But not before the Indian legend had shown the Welsh spinner a glimpse of his genius.
“He was just on the cusp of international cricket when we played against him,” said Croft, who played 21 Tests and 50 one-day internationals for England.
“My first memory was just how small he was but they don’t call him the ‘Little Master’ for nothing.
“For
someone of that size, it’s surprising how hard he hits a cricket ball. He could not just dismantle you with power but could also pick you apart
with touch and guile.
“He had the all-round game which could leave you very demoralised because he always wanted to dominate spinners.”
Cardiff’s SWALEC Stadium will host Tendulkar’s former teammates again next year on Wednesday August 27 in a repeat of last summer’s ICC Champions Trophy showpiece final.
2014 provides a limited choice of international cricket in Wales, with just one game, following the all you can eat buffet feast in 2013, when the SWALEC Stadium hosted eight international fixtures and attracted more than 65,000 fans to Glamorgan’s HQ.
Nevertheless, the one day of international cricket Cardiff will host is up there with the best you could have as the World Cup winners return to Wales and will certainly see fans flocking back to the SWALEC Stadium, with India’s supporters turning the headquarters of Glamorgan into a “mini-Mumbai”, when their heroes came to the Welsh capital during June.
India went on to lift the ICC Champions Trophy crown, defeating England at Edgbaston, to add to the World Cup they won in the one-day format back in 2011.
England were India’s opponents in the first action-packed contest the world champions played in Cardiff the same year. In this encounter India’s batsmen posted a total in excess of 300, but it did not prove to be enough as the then 21 year old debutant Jonny Bairstow provided a nerveless display of power-hitting under the SWALEC Stadium floodlights to secure a thrilling win for England, who still remain undefeated in Cardiff in full internationals.
Since that defeat, India have certainly enjoyed playing on Welsh soil, having visited three more times during the popular ICC Champions Trophy competition this year.
During the tournament, India were unbeaten at the Cardiff venue, defeating Australia, South Africa and Sri Lanka, with the Indian batsmen posting formidable totals in excess of 300 in the first two games, whilst their talented bowlers dismantled the Sri Lankan batting inside 35 overs in the sell-out semi-final contest.
Tickets are now on sale for next year’s one-day match in August with 50% of the allocation already sold. For further details log onto www.glamorgancricket.com
or call 02920 419 311.
