da betway： © Reuters One remembers the tremendous excitement generated in July 1968, whenIndian-born England captain Michael Colin Cowdrey became the firstcricketer to appear in 100 Test matches
Partab Ramchand03-Aug-2006
© ReutersOne remembers the tremendous excitement generated in July 1968, whenIndian-born England captain Michael Colin Cowdrey became the firstcricketer to appear in 100 Test matches. He had made his debut inAustralia in November 1954, and even for an England regular like him,it had taken almost 14 years. It was a singular achievement, but onewas sure that it would not remain unique for long. With theinternational calendar getting more and more crowded, it was only amatter of time that other cricketers joined him in playing more than100 Tests.And yet, by the time Cowdrey had played the last of his 114 matches -interestingly enough, also in Australia, in 1975 – he remained theonly cricketer to have played in a century of Tests. Over the nextquarter of a century, however, with international engagements gettingheavier, around 25 cricketers had joined him. All of them were over30, some even close to 40 and Geoffrey Boycott was over 40 – whenthey played their 100th Test. The latest entrant into the club istherefore unique in that he is only 29 years of age.But then, Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar has been associated with recordbreaking feats ever since his entry into the Test arena at Karachi inNovember 1989 at the age of 16 years and 205 days. Given the fact thathe was always going to be a regular member of the side, it was only amatter of time before he played his century of Tests, and the onlypoint of interest was whether he would be playing the significantmatch at home or abroad.At the Oval on Thursday, nearly 13 years after his debut, Tendulkarwill become the youngest to achieve the feat. Except for missing threeTests in Sri Lanka last year due to an injury, Tendulkar has played inevery single Test since his debut – a run of 84 consecutive matchesthat is a tribute to his fitness, calibre, skill and enthusiasm.Over the years, Tendulkar has carved out a niche for himself in worldcricket with his inimitable brand of batsmanship that has seen manyspeak of the little Indian as next only to Don Bradman. The great manhimself reckoned that Tendulkar’s approach was the closest to hisstyle of batting and included him in his all-time dream team.Tendulkar of course is no Bradman, as he himself has admitted. SunilGavaskar summed up the issue in succinct terms way back in October1983, when he equalled Bradman’s record of 29 Test hundreds.Discounting any comparisons, Gavaskar said that the only batsmanbetter than Bradman would be the one who gets 30 hundreds in 52 Tests.
© CricInfoBut while Bradman remains supreme, there is little doubt that no onesince the high noon of Vivian Richards, about a quarter of a centuryago, has generated so much excitement when he comes out to bat.Tendulkar’s dominance of the bowling can be compared to Richards, andsince he is a shade better in defence, it makes him a more completebatsman.Few batsmen in the game’s history have inflicted greater psychologicaldamage on bowlers. The manner in which Tendulkar takes them apartdrives the bowlers to nervous depression. He has them in such a tizzywith a trail of devastating shots that at last, in desperation anddisgusted with life as it were, the bowler has to either look to theheavens for divine help or, closer to earth, implore with the captainto take him off. “There is no use bowling to this bloke” has been thegeneral refrain of bowlers the world over. When you bowl to him, therearen’t enough tricks. Similarly, when you write about him, therearen’t enough words.Tendulkar is a peerless player of any bowling. His technique is sowell-organised that he can counter any delivery with ease and comfort,giving the impression of having all the time in the world to play thestroke the hallmark of the greatest of batsmen. His excellenteyesight sees any minute change in the bowler’s action, and his nimblefootwork enables him to get to the pitch of the ball faster and withmuch less effort than most batsmen.Should the bowler force him onto the back foot, Tendulkar’s feet arein perfect position to essay a square-cut, hook, pull or the lofteddrive. He has no pet stroke; he plays them all handsomely,felicitously and lucratively. There is an element of power in hisbatting, but it is not total, naked power, just controlled force.Timing is the essence of all his shots. His concentration islegendary, his determination is fierce, and his hunger to succeed isinsatiable.An important facet of Tendulkar’s character is his ability to rise tothe occasion when a challenge is thrown at him. His treatment of ShaneWarne is the foremost example of this. The ace Australian leg-spinner,voted among Wisden’s five cricketers of the century, does not evenwant to hear his name mentioned, stating that Tendulkar has given himnightmares.Tendulkar will become the fourth Indian to achieve this prestigiouslandmark. Sunil Gavaskar was the first; he played his 100th Test atLahore in October 1984, becoming the fourth after Cowdrey, Boycott andClive Lloyd – and also at 35 the youngest. Dilip Vengsarkar was thesecond, playing his 100th Test at the age of 32 in his hometown ofBombay against New Zealand in November 1988. Almost exactly a yearlater, Kapil Dev became the third to reach the landmark. Interestinglyenough, his 100th Test was Tendulkar’s first. Kapil was a couple ofmonths short of his 31st birthday when he played that Karachi Test.Cowdrey made his 100th Test a doubly memorable occasion by getting acentury. Gordon Greenidge emulated his feat in 1990, and along withJaved Miandad, holds an absolutely unique record. Both batsmen scoredcenturies in their first and 100th Test. Will Tendulkar emulate theothers by getting a hundred at the Oval? That would make the occasionall the more unforgettable and be a fitting tribute to the pre-eminentbatsman in the world today. Calm, cool and composed even in the mostcritical situation, Tendulkar remains the picture of modesty andcultured behaviour, the prime role model for today’s youth.