Joe Root, Record Breaker

It seems like a different age when I first raved about a young Yorkshireman breaking into the England Test team in 2012. For his county, he seemed to have all the attributes of a world-class batsman, notably timing, all-round strokeplay, temperament and decision-making. In other words, all the basic qualities which enable a cricketer to succeed in all formats. 

Twelve years later, at the age of 33, Joe Root has achieved the inevitable landmark of England’s highest run scorer, even continuing his innings in the heat of Multan to break his personal best, with 262. At the end of this match, the records will also name him as part of the country’s top Test partnership and the world’s fourth highest innings total. 

Yet, for all the statistics, what I like most about Root is his unflashy attitude to his profession. It’s also why I warmed more to his former team-mates Iain Bell or Alastair Cook rather than egomaniacs like Kevin Pietersen. He captained England in Tests 64 times in his usual unfussy style but the scintillating form of 2015 and 2016 could never be recaptured and between 2018 and 2020 Root entered a relatively lean spell. All great players have those, of course and, since handing the captain’s reins to Ben Stokes, he has blossomed once more. 

Some of Root’s contemporaries were considered slightly superior for their ability to convert fifties into hundreds but he has also improved this side of his game. Few players in recent years have even stayed in the international arena after resigning as skipper but he has maintained that dedication to his craft and country for the benefit of all. 

Bazball was never going to faze Joe, either. He simply and seamlessly brought his top-class white-ball ability into the Test arena. The likes of Duckett, Brook, Smith et al may churn out innings at a run a ball, but Root can, alongside those impeccably drilled drives, cuts and pulls, manufacture 21^st-century shots like reverse sweeps with the best of ‘em. He has shown he can perform in short series, global tournaments, at home and in Asia, although the Aussie quicks have in the past had his measure. 

As for his Test career, I see no reason why a fit Joe Root can’t surpass Sachin Tendulkar’s one impregnable run aggregate of 15,921. With England’s fondness for the supreme test of cricketing competition, those lasting five days, and aged only 33, he will quickly ease past Dravid, Ponting and Kallis and surely gobble up those 3000 additional runs to pass the Indian’s tally and set a new target that ‘no man will ever reach’. 

That’s what they said about Tendulkar but records are there to be broken. Only the ICC’s increasing thirst for one-dayers and the ECB potentially heading down the same muddy path can prevent future challenges to Root, and they will come only from England. Harry Brook is one possibility. His fledgling Test career has yielded similar results to that of Joe Root a decade earlier although the younger man from Keighley lost a few years to his instinctive preference for T20 stuff. Now, under the tutelage of McCullum, Stokes and co, he has become the embodiment of Bazball, even more so than Stokes himself. Aged 25, he will require a long, unbroken career, probably with a rest from the IPL and other franchise cricket, to get anywhere close to 15,000 Test runs. However, when you can strike 317 at almost six an over in a Pakistan summer, don’t write him off! Keep him in tandem with Joe Root and the Yorkshire pair may well set many more records around the world. 

Virat Kohli – The Best ever?

This week, Virat Kohli reached the landmark of 10,000 runs in ODIs. In fact, he didn’t reach the barrier so much as smash through it. The achievement came with a century against the West Indies, which was duly followed by another, his third in succession.

Much has been made of his joining the five-figure club in only 205 innings, by far the quickest to do so. In particular, he needed 54 fewer innings than his illustrious former India team-mate Sachin Tendulkar. As EspnCricinfo’s analysis illustrates, a straightforward comparison of statistics is meaningless; you need to factor in the evolution in one-day batting during the past twenty years.

Without get bogged down in numbers, suffice it to say that, when comparing each player’s scoring records with their contemporaries, there isn’t a lot to separate Tendulkar and Kohli. Both are legends of their respective generations and those of us who have seen them both play should savour the experience. Of course, Kohli should have many more years ahead of him. His 30^th birthday may be looming but if he maintains the fitness, appetite and skill for another decade, he could yet surpass SRT’s formidable world record of 18,426 runs.

Both had their fallow periods but Kohli’s purple patches seem to stretch on and on. In the past three years, he has accumulated well over 3,000 runs at more than one a ball. In 2018 his average is an astonishing 144 and, unlike various other pretenders to his throne, has the great ability to convert 50s into centuries. He rarely throws his wicket away, knows how to judge a chase and all this while bearing the weight of his nation’s captaincy.

Only twelve others have passed 10,000 ODI runs, and already Kohli has eclipsed his long-time colleague and captain MS Dhoni. Dilshan, Lara and Dravid may well be overtaken during the winter, then Ganguly, Inzamam and Kallis are in his sights by the end of 2019. The big five are further ahead but, unless something unexpected happens, all bar Tendulkar will surely be hunted down by the time Kohli is 35.

Virat’s average, not necessarily as significant a stat as in Tests, is an astonishing 59.90. Nobody else, past and present, has come close. The likes of Sehwag, Shahid Afridi, Brendon McCullum and AB De Villiers boast superior strike rates but Kohli looks the complete one-day batsman without the need for wild slogging.

I remember when he made his debut in 2008, he was seen as a one-day specialist and it was another three years before breaking through into the Test team. Questions were asked, and it took him a while before establishing himself. Could he succeed in the five-day format?

Could he hell?! I’m not sure what switch was tripped in 2016 but, alongside his ODI career, his Test figures went stratospheric. He currently tops the rankings in both formats and also  at 12 in the highly specialist T20 field. The man can do no wrong. Get him in the Brexit negotiating team immediately! Put him in charge of eliminating global plastic use right now!

Joe Root, Kane Williamson, Steve Smith and Hashim Amla are all magnificent all-round batsmen but at the moment Kohli is untouchable. Where he sits in the all-time pantheon of limited-overs strokeplayers is a different matter. I wonder how incredible blazing bladesmiths like Viv Richards, Everton Weekes, Gary Sobers, Zaheer Abbas or even the more recent Javed Miandad, Brian Lara or Adam Gilchrist would have fared in this era of short boundaries, helpful fielding restrictions and a T20-led mindset. Pretty well, I fancy. I may be biased but reckon my idol Sir Viv would have eaten Kohli for breakfast.

I have read comments about is character and personality which express contrasting opinions. I don’t really know whether he is a lazy egotistical tyrant or a well-meaning team player. He can’t be both! All I can say is that a haughty remote cricketer wouldn’t be so ready to acknowledge the “Kohli, Kohli, give us a wave!” brigade as I have seen him do in Cardiff. As for his position amongst the all-time greats, I think it best to wait for his retirement before passing judgment. In the meantime, I rate him above everybody other batsman playing at the moment so let’s just enjoy watching a superb player in his absolute pomp.

Cricket World Cup 2015 - Preview

It seems like only yesterday when MS Dhoni crunched that match-winning six in Mumbai to spark riotous celebrations and Sachin Tendulkar's fabulous boyish smile. So much has changed in four short years, not least India's entire attack.

Some of the best ever World Cup performers were on show in 2011 before retirement. Unsurprisingly, Tendulkar's longevity made him by far the top scorer in the competition's history, followed by Ricky Ponting, who at least had a few earlier cup successes under his belt prior to Australia's failure to make the semis last time. Muttiah Muralitharan bowed out as a beaten finalist, too.

So who else makes my all-time World Cup XI? For me, it's Herschelle Gibbs and Sanath Jayasuriya. Sehwag and Hayden have a decent claim, but the Sri Lankan practically invented the pinch-hitting opener role, combined with a haul of 27 valuable wickets. The South African scored 1,069 runs at more than 56 and a strike rate of 87, his exploits unrewarded in terms of silverware.

SRT and Ponting are there, of course, and there has to be room for the mighty Viv Richards. From his electric fielding in the inaugural Final to some mighty hitting in the next two competitions, he showed what was possible in ODIs, be they 60, 55 or 50 overs an innings. Imagine what he'd do in the modern era of big bats, small boundaries and Powerplays.

Adam Gilchrist was a phenomenon as wicketkeeper-batsman in any form of cricket but in World Cups he topped 1,000 runs and took more scalps behind the stumps than anyone else. No shortage of fantastic all-rounders to choose from, but I'd pick winning captains Imran Khan (Pakistan, 1992) and Kapil Dev (India, 1983). Murali is the obvious spin choice supported by leading wicket-taker Glenn McGrath (71 wickets at under four runs an over) and fellow Aussie Brett Lee. His economy rate was inferior but strike rate and average were better than all of the big names.

No current names grace that list but I wouldn't bet against AB De Villiers from usurping Gilly's place, and could the likes of Dale Steyn, Kumar Sangakkara and Dilshan press their claims for promotion from superstars to World Cup legends in what will surely be their swansongs? I reckon some of the younger players could really shine in the forthcoming weeks, and not necessarily the big hitters like Corey Anderson, Chris Gayle, Brendon McCullum or David Miller. The ICC rankings suggest the stars will include Amla, Kohli, AB, Shakib, Saeed Ajmal (if permitted) and Mitch Johnson. However, don't be surprised to see Joe Root, Kane Williamson, Trent Boult and Kyle Abbott making a few headlines.

I'm a huge supporter of an inclusive World Cup with the leading Associate nations having their day in the sun, striving to snatch unlikely successes against the odds and maybe inspiring youngsters in Ireland, Afghanistan, even the West Indies to take up the sport and be the World Cup legends of the future. Nevertheless I don't see anyone outside the top eight seeds from progressing to the quarter-finals. Bangladesh could do what they failed to do on home territory four years ago but at whose expense? Pool A looks too strong. However, could Zimbabwe or Ireland upset the Windies or Pakistan in Pool B? Not impossible.

In 2011, New Zealand and Sri Lanka reached the semis but my bold prediction for the last four is: Australia v India and New Zealand v England. Yes, England! Written off as no-hopers in the absence of Pietersen or any form for Eoin Morgan, I wouldn't rule them out in a one-off contest against, say, Pakistan or South Africa should Anderson and Broad shock the top order.

That leaves us with a battle of the two hosts, just as we did in the last World Cup. The Black Caps are buzzing right now and they look to have a good balance of bat and ball, seam and spin, but their fast bowlers are probably more swing than pace and bounce, which is likely to favour Starc and Johnson. Whether it's Smith or Clarke who leads them up to the podium, I'd say the eventual winners will be wearing green and gold.

I'd love South Africa or New Zealand to triumph for the first time and it will be fascinating to see how they fare against the hosts who must be favourites.

India face more Boxing Day heartache

2-0 down already and now India step out in front of 90,000 fans at a ground where they have lost five consecutive Tests, all of them convincingly. Melbourne is traditionally a bowler's wicket where draws are rare. It won't be a case of hoping Vijay, Dhawan, Pujara and Kohli rack up 500+ runs and cling on. India's attack must fire on all cylinders or face another defeat.

Four years ago, scoring became harder and harder each day until Pattinson, Hilfenhaus and Siddle wore down the formidable Indian line-up of Gambhir, Sehwag, Dravid, Tendulkar, Laxman and a young Kohli for a second time inside four days. In 2007, the margin was a hefty 337 runs. Phil Jaques and Matthew Hayden almost beat India on their own. Mitchell Johnson's Test career was in its infancy but his second innings 3-21 played a major part alongside Brett Lee and Stuart Clark. A four-man India attack was pretty toothless by contrast, a situation which looks set to be repeated this week in 2014.

Back in time to 2003 and Boxing Day belonged to Virender Sehwag. His 195 gave India a great start but he had poor support. Steve Waugh's side boasted a fantastic side and Hayden (136) and Ricky Ponting (257) flayed Agarkar, Nehra and Zaheer Khan to all parts. Despite the absence of Warne, McGrath and Gillespie, the Aussies restricted Ganguly's men to 286 before Hayden and Ponting knocked off the 95 needed on the final morning.

In 1999, the home team were again favourites. The weather as much as India's attack slowed the green baggies down on dates 1 and 2 but they passed 400. More than could be said for India. Only captain Sachin Tendulkar looked defiant, his 116 providing almost half the side's total. At the other end, debutant Brett Lee and McGrath wreaked havoc. Soon Waugh declared to leave India two days to make 376. Rain threatened to save them but Lee, Fleming and Mark Waugh did more enough to win.

In 1991 Bruce Reid took 6-66 and 6-60 to spark that five-match MCG losing streak. However, six years earlier India had been on topics. Only Allan Border's 163 and the weather staved off an unlikely loss. Back in 1981 Australia were in transition and had list the Ashes the previous summer. Glen Chappell led the side and Border's century set up a large first innings lead. A 165-run opening stand between Chauhan and Gavaskar put India back into the match but Australia needed only 143 to win. Enter Kapil Dev. Bowling second-change, he claimed 5-28 and the opposition was skittled for 83.

Somehow I can't see India repeating the feat this Christmas. A restored Bhuvi Kumar and Ishant Sharma will have to keep Warner and Smith quiet. Twice. India are notoriously poor tourists and an Aussie whitewash looks almost inevitable.

Farewell Tendulkar - the most celebrated cricketer ever!

I wrote yesterday about Sachin Tendulkar's last innings and his place in history but now the Little Master's illustrious career really has ended there is room for an extra blog from me. A million other writers will convey their love and admiration with greater skill or passion than I could muster, but I can't let the occasion pass without comment.

The boy from Bombay (as was) may not actually have been the most entertaining or exciting batsman ever, nor even the one with the highest average, but who can doubt his immense popularity. Bradman, Richards, Sobers, Compton and co may have edged Tendulkar in many ways but none of them could have bowed out in such a theatrical climax on home territory. Were there any Indians not watching on TV either as he left the pitch for the final time, either as batsman or victorious fielder?

People have performed objective and subjective statistical analyses of Tendulkar's contributions to India over the past 24 years, including the ICC rankings, and concluded that his stature owes more to longevity and consistency than world-leading brilliance at any single point. True, he was almost always part of an excellent batting line-up and so he didn't necessarily stand out in his team as much as, say, Peter May, Greg Chappell or, more recently, Brian Lara. Nevertheless, 24 years at the top, seeing off almost all modern competitors to the title of greatest ever, is an achievement in itself. His thanks to the doctors was probably truly heartfelt but of course his talent, temperament and humility have elevated him above even Ponting, Lara and his often under-rated partner Rahul Dravid in the eyes of many cricket supporters.

The 2nd Test slaughter of the woeful Windies included memorable centuries by Sharma and Pujara and a terrific ten-wicket haul for Pragyan Ojha. The two-match series also featured excellent all-round contributions by Ravi Ashwin. It also featured an embarrassing couple of performances by the Caribbean opposition. Yet such is the drama of a legend's farewell that the series and the day belonged to Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar.

Good luck to his successors Kohli, Dhawan, Sharma et al. It's down to them, along with the new spin twins, to maintain India's place at or close to the top of world cricket. No pressure!

Sachin Tendulkar, from twinkle-toed teenager to sporting legend

The world's media have descended on Mumbai, as have every Indian businessman and politician, hoping that some Sachin sparkle will rub off on to their careers. Cynical? Me? Of course, but that's the age we live in. Of course we can still find something in sport that creates shivers down the spine, raises the hairs on the arms and brings tears to the eyes of the most hardened of critics. The arrival of Sachin Tendulkar onto the Wankhede pitch for what could be the last time ever was one such moment.

Admittedly, I didn't see it; I was tucked up in bed 4,000-odd miles away. However, this should go down as one of the most celebrated farewells in sporting history. At least the Little Master fared better than Don Bradman in his final match, but could he retire with what is now a rare century? Will anyone dare to get him out?! I remember feeling a lmup in the throat when Viv Richards strutted out in his last Test at The Oval 23 years ago, the banner on the pitch-side house saying what we all felt: "We'll miss you, Viv". That, I suspect, will be nothing compared with the sentiments expressed by the billion Indians and those of all cricket-loving nationalities this week.

Tendulkar may be a little more grizzled than he was a quarter of a century ago, a little slower on his feet but he remains the cool, calm, quiet character of old. Just squillions of rupees richer! It's a different era now, of course. SRT's career may have been extended by the fact he hardly ever plays anything other than T20 for his hometown franchise these days. However, he has been blessed by 25 seasons of almost injury-free success. As an even littler master he was talked up as a future megastar. Others have had high hopes heaped on their youthful shoulders only for real life to get in the way. Sachin has lived up to those early epithets, and more.

It makes watching film of those early innings even more extraordinary. He made his international debut at 16 in what must have been challenging circumstances, batting at six against Karachi. Being bowled for 15 by Waqar Younis was no embarrassment for anyone at that time. Next time at the crease he scored a painstaking half-century at Faisalabad, but he failed to reach three figures until Test number eight, by which time young Tendulkar had turned seventeen.

Today I enjoyed TV pictures of his feet dancing down the pitch to drive Chris Lewis, rising on those twinkling toes to cut Devon Malcolm or punch Angus Fraser to the cover boundary. The mop of curly hair was a little darker and looser at a hot, dry Old Trafford in August 1990 but his timing, temperament and talent were clear for all to see. The commentary of '50s and '60s bowling legends Richie Benaud and Jim Laker reflected that; here was a young man with bags of potential, and his 68 and 119 not out offered statistical proof. Who remembers that his skipper Azharuddin struck a superb 179 in the first innings, or that four England batsmen also scored centuries in the same game?

I don't know how many players he has partnered in those 200 Tests and 463 ODIs, let alone all the other first-class and limited-over matches, but SR Tendulkar's name has appeared on scorecards for 25 years. He started out alongside Kapil Dev and Dilip Vengsarkar, heroes from the Seventies, and now he bows out in the exciting young company of Kohli and Pujara, who should keep India strong well into the 2020s.
That may be just as much of a legacy as those 50,000 runs, hundred international hundreds and scintillating strokeplay in all forms of cricket. For that we should all be grateful. We'll miss you, Sachin...

Sachin's farewell deserves better

I know that Sachin Tendulkar is certainly the most complete batsman in my lifetime and worshipped like no other sportsmanon the planet, probably ever. However, it does him no favours when the BCCI forces a switch of venue supposedly to accommodate his wish to play his 200th and farewell Test match at his beloved Wankhede stadium in Mumbai.

I wouldn't like to be in the city on November 18th. There must be a genuine danger of severe flooding caused by tears of the Tendulkar faithful! The pressure must be on the West Indian opponents to let him score a century. That is if the Little Master can remember how to do so. It seems like years since he last played a first-class game let alone reached three figures. His previous Test century came at Cape Town almost three seasons ago. Anyone else would have been dropped long ago but we all know Tendulkar has been undroppable for two decades. No chairman of selectors bold enough even to suggest such an action would have escaped the country with his life! The last time he played at Mumbai, also against the Windies, he accumulated a less than masterful 16 runs in two innings. What would happen next month if he skied his first ball to, say, mid-on? Would the man underneath dare to catch it, knowing he would have to be smuggled out of the ground to the airport within the hour and never return? A dilemma I wouldn't fancy facing! Eric Hollies' dismissal of Bradman for 0 in the latter's final innings did at least happen in a different era, and in England, so he got away with it.

His retirement of ODIs did allow younger players like Dhawan, Sharma, Kohli, Raina and Jadeja to show how good they are and, much as I'd have enjoyed watching Tendulkar at the Champions Trophy, he certainly wasn't missed one jot. Even in T20 for the Indians he looked a shadow of his former self, so I'm glad he has taken the decision sooner rather than later. There have been examples of players who elect to call it a day after a particular milestone is reached. Think of Murali and his 800th wicket and Andrew Strauss on his 100th, whie Nasser Hussain went just four appearances before that same achievement. However, it all seems a bit selfish to dictate when and where his last match will be in the future. I guess Tendulkar may be unlike any other cricketer and so his wishes can be placed above that of his team. After all, nobody will remember the result of the match!

Nobody has got near Tendulkar's current total of 198 Tests. Ponting and Waugh have retired still thirty adrift. Kallis stands on 162, Chanderpaul on 148 and Mahela Jayawardene 138, but each won't have many opportunities to add substantially to their totals. In this era of T20 dominance, I think it's a safe bet that nobody else will ever so much as catch a sniff of the 200 mark. However, for all Sachin's impressive set of personal records, his career totals of 954 senior matches, 50,024 runs and 142 hundreds are way short of the best in history. Graeme Hick has played an incredible 1,214 matches, including 178 centuries (behind Sir Jack Hobbs' 197) but Graham Gooch compiled an immense 67,057 in a 28-year career. Dream on, Sachin!

Statistics are one thing, charisma and popularity are something else. Nobody can accuse Gooch of being particularly charismatic but then Tendulkar is no Yuvraj, Afridi or Dhoni. He has always just got on with the job while the whole of India revolves around him. His departure from the cricket pitch will doubtless leave his billion-plus fans with nothing left to orbit. That is one hell of a gap to fill.

Mumbai give Tendulkar a winning send-off

Having picked the Super Kings to win back the IPL title, I suppose it was inevitable that the Mumbai Lions would come out on top in the Eden Gardens showdown. No Ponting or Tendulkar, but in this Final it was the T20 specialist Kieron Pollard whose batting proved decisive in the first innings. It was then the turn of the frontline bowlers to shine. When the two slingers Malnga and Johnson had despatched potential match-winners Mike Hussey, Raina and badrinath back to the dugout inside two overs with just three runs on the board, things were looking grim for CSK.

However, in T20, there's always hope. Some big sixes and there's always a chance of reaching the target before the remaining wickets tumble. Nevertheless at 39-6, all Chennai hopes were resting on one man's shoulders. Batsman, 'keeper and captain for CSK and India, MS Dhoni is used to immense pressure but this was one challenge beyond even his talents. To his credit, he compiled another unbeaten half-century but the pacemen, plus Ojha, Harbajhan Singh and Pollard, proved too difficult to hit. The dot balls mounted up and the game was up before the start of the final Pollard over. Sachin was out injured but the boyish enthusiasm was still to the fore on the boundary as Rohit Sharma spent ages pointlessly shuffling his field to defend more than twenty runs from the last ball!

What we didn't know was that the Little Master had already decided to make this IPL his last. A pity he couldn't represent the Indians on the pitch in their hour of success but he did at least bow out with a six a few weeks ago. At 40, Tendulkar has now officially retired from two of the major money-spinning formats IPL and ODIs. To his credit, he has left Test cricket to last but I think he should bow out this year. If he rediscovers the old form, perhaps he could persevere for longer, but at 40+ even the longest, most lucrative and stunningly successful career of the modern era has to end. Rahul Dravid, as so often, made the right decision at the right time. Perhaps Sachin is thinking of the succession plan in the national side. Essentially there doesn't seem to be one. So much batting talent in the Ranji Trophy and ODIs: Kohli, Raina, Rahane, Sharma, etc, etc, but such a shame that none have transferred their considerable potential on home soil to the Test arena around the world. Maybe it will come.

What the IPL won't produce is the next crop of Indian Test batsmen. The top order at the Indians, Super Kings, etc, are occupied by the international superstars like Gayle, Watson, Hussey and Jaywardene or retirees like Dravid and Ponting, giving little chance for the young guns. In any case, a few whirlwind 30s or 40s in IPL is hardly a firm foundation for a brilliant Test career. On the other hand, T20 does offer bowlers the chance to experiment with their craft in front of huge crowds, and has given an audience for the Narines of this world to develop. It doesn't allow them much of a chance to fail but when a bowler learns to take wickets and keep different batsmen guessing, that will hold them in good stead for any form of cricket.

Of course, this year's IPL has been rocked by the latest spot-fixing scandal. Where there's huge sums of money swilling around, there will also be unscrupulous individuals able to tempt players over to the 'dark side', risking their long-term sporting careers for short-term criminal gain. As Dravid said this weekend, that doesn't mean the IPL should be scrapped, because the dodgy bookies will merely find another tournament to taint.

And so the game moves on to what I would classify as more meaty cricket, with the 50-over Champions Trophy, more Test series and, for me, the County Championship. A 100% cake and chocolate diet is fun for a while, but mixing with some protein, carbs and greens is ultimately far more satisfying!

Tendulkar - can he rediscover his form this time?

After India’s rare home series defeat, and previous thumpings by Australia and England, fingers are being pointed in all directions. One focus is captain MS Dhoni, although he is more apt to blame the weather or dastardly groundsmen preparing unsuitable pitches (oh, the irony!). The lack of top-class seamers, spinners, batsmen, selectors, coaches, … That just about covers every possible angle short of the extra-terrestrial! No doubt all, except perhaps the form-warping beams from Mars, have been factors in India’s fall from grace in Test matches in the past 18 months.

Inevitably, Sachin Tendulkar has also been criticised. Too old, too selfish, too quiet? It’s true that he can no longer be relied on to produce the big winning innings or the match-saver of yore. For all the stuff of legend that makes up SRT, he has never been a one-man team. His incredible career has spanned those of other Indian greats like Kapil Dev, Azharuddin, Kumble and of course Ganguly, Dravid and Laxman. Sehwag is still there, and is just as culpable as the Little Master, even if he did manage a century in the victory at Ahmedabad.


The statistics do not lie. Tendulkar’s last Test century came at Cape Town almost two years ago, since when he has played more than 30 innings. In 2012 he has passed 50 only twice in fifteen attempts and in the series against England was dismissed in single figures four times out of six. They are not the stats of a player on top of his game. However, even the greatest batsmen go through barren patches. Lesser mortals get dropped, but tried and trusted cricketers are allowed to continue in the knowledge that they will come good sooner rather than later. This has happened to Tendulkar before.

In 2002, he had three ducks in four innings in the West Indies. Two years later, he produced a sequence against Pakistan and the Aussies that read: 2-8-1-8-2-5. In 2008 he experienced another ten innings without even a fifty to his name. Each time he bounced back with a vengeance. While he played few Tests in 2009, the following year was his most prolific. Seven centuries and 1,562 runs at an average of 78 flowed from his bat as his country climbed to the top of the tree.

He has had worse years than 2012 but a Test average of barely 23 hardly engenders massive confidence, and those around him, Pujara and Kohli apart, don’t seem to be pulling their weight either. Despite bucketloads of money and a billion cricket-mad inhabitants, India are struggling as a force in international cricket right now. When that happens, many choose to scrap the system and put their faith in youth. I don’t think that is a very good strategy for any team, provided there are some wise heads around to guide the emerging talent.

The big question now is whether Tendulkar has the form and mentoring ability required. History shows that he has pulled it around before and shone like a beacon. Trouble is, that is history; the Little Master is 39 years old. Even the all-time great Sir Don Bradman retired just short of his 40th birthday, his last two innings being 173 not out and 0. Dravid and Ponting knew when to call it a day. Kallis goes on, playing superbly, so of course Sachin wants to continue, especially with an Aussie series beckoning.

I don’t think he should wait that long. I’m sure that selectors wouldn’t allow him that luxury, either. Nobody wants to exit on a low, but how long can you persevere in search of that perfect moment to leave with head held high? Given that SRT’s status as all-time cricketing legend is assured, nobody would complain if he chose to retire now. Better that than have the decision made for him.

Ricky Ponting - and then there were two...

All credit to Ricky Ponting for announcing his imminent retirement on the eve of his last Test rather than months beforehand. Best to get the pain over with as quickly as possible. Mind you, it was his successor Michael Clarke who looked the more emotional at the press conference.

Yes, there may have been detractors who were losing patience with Punter's performances in the current series and the man himself was the first to admit frustration with the way he has got out so often against South Africa. 24 runs in four innings is a paltry aggregate but no doubt he will go out with a bang in his final session at the crease. He has made a career out of big second innings scores so nothing can be ruled out.

And what a career it has been! 168 Tests, 375 ODIs plus 17 T20 outings add up to 560 international appearances, most of them on the winning side. He followed in Steve Waugh's considerable shoes as a highly successful captain, with an uncompromising, often abrasive, style. But that's how the Aussies like their leaders, and every time the English booed him his stock at home rose further. Of course his side uniquely contrived to lose not one, not two but three Ashes series. Tours of India also disappointed. However, 27,000 runs, 70-odd centuries and more than 360 catches in the Australian cause tell a tale of a brilliant batsman.

Bradman was unique and Greg Chappell excelled in an era dominated by fast bowlers, but Ponting the batsman has shone brighter in the last seventeen years than anyone apart from, perhaps, Brian Lara and Sachin Tendulkar. Until recently he was the most successful number three apart maybe from Rahul Dravid. From the callow youth with a little goatee I recall from the mid 90s to the still youthful-looking 37 year-old veteran, he has experienced the inevitable ups and downs, on and off the pitch (what Aussie legend hasn't?!). In the previous decade, he had few peers, aggregating more than 2000 Test runs in 2003, 2005 and 2006. In 12 Tests of 2005-6 he struck eight centuries, and on three occasions (once against the Windies at Brisbane and twice against South Africa, home and away) hit two in the same match. An astonishing run of form, and achieved as captain, too.

Ponting's departure means that just two of the batting legends of the past two decades remain on the international scene: Tendulkar and Jacques Kallis. No doubt there will be added pressure on both to quit while ahead, but they should resist. The Little Master has had bad runs before but inevitably this one is being attributed to either advancing years or lack of effort. Or both. Let's face it, he's been there, done it, got the T-shirt. The biggest global star cricket has ever produced. The SA all-rounder has nothing to worry about form-wise; for him, it's all about playing on until the motivation or body tell him to stop. Punter has called time on his own career on his own terms, and that is surely the way for a sporting superstar to do it. Even the hardest core of England supporters must begrudgingly admit Ricky Ponting will be missed.

Sehwag and Pujara take charge

After all the waiting, India enjoyed the best of the opening skirmishes in Ahmedabad. So many under-fire home players but at least two restored their confidence on Day 1. Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir relished their first century stand for yonks, then Viru progressed to one of his run-a-ball specials before missing a sweep off Graeme Swann. It's eleven years since his Test debut in South Africa, when he scored a relatively sedate 105 at six in the order, and two whole years since his last hundred, on the same ground.

That impressive debut in 2001 was shared with a big innings from Sachin Tendulkar but the Little Master looks a pale shadow of the batsman he was even a couple of years ago. He lasted a mere 18 balls before becoming Swann's third victim. This match gave Virat Kohli a chance to establish his true Test credentials but despite a very patient spell at the crease, he made only 19. Thank goodness for one other young star. Cheteshwar Pujara followed his 159 against New Zealand in August with an unbeaten 98, and I hope he quickly reaches three figures in the morning.

Yuvraj Singh, like Tendulkar, recently crashed a major score in a rare domestic first-class outing and he looked solid in partnership with Pujara. If the pair can continue until lunch, England will be looking down the barrel. However, Swann was beginning to get real grip and spin, and has reason to be optimistic about adding to his four wickets. Tim Bresnan suffered at the hands of Sehwag and Anderson couldn't get any swing. India's side is awash with slow bowlers so perhaps England will rue the inclusion of Patel instead of Panesar. We'll see.

I'm also nervous for Nick Compton. As a Somerset fan, part of me really wants him to do well as an ambasssador for his adopted county. However, should he notch up loadsa runs, he could end up with a central contract and then where will we be in the Championship next summer?! A Compton-Cook opening pair won't make for an exciting exhibition of strokeplay. I can't see our Nick becoming the second man in a few days striking a six from the first ball of a Test match innings, a la Gayle. Of course, that's not why he was picked; the fireworks are Pietersen's prerogative.We'll know in the next few days whether he marks his return with a Sehwag rocket or Tendulkar damp squib.

England in India Part 2

I blogged previously about England's mixed fortunes in India between 1972 and 1985, the last time they won an away Test series between the two nations. Because of a row over Graham Gooch's participation in a shameful rebel tour of South Africa, the 1989 tour was cancelled so when Gooch (now forgiven) led England to Asia in 1993, there had been an eight-year gap.

In 1990, the skipper had helped himself to 456 runs in the Lord's Test alone, and in the three reverse fixtures the England batting line-up boasted the likes of Stewart, Robin Smith, Hick and one of the 1985 stars, Mike Gatting. However, it was hardly a vintage bowling attack, led by Devon Malcolm, Chris Lewis and Paul Jarvis. Their opponents fielded captain Mohammad Azharuddin, ageing legend Kapil Dev, the supremely talented youngsters Tendulkar and Kambli and one of the new breed of leg-spinners, Anil Kumble. As things turned out, it was no contest; England were totally outplayed in every department, on and off the pitch. There were two, and almost three, innings defeats with Kumble taking almost as many wickets as the entire English seam attack between them. Hick and Lewis were the only centurions during the series while the Indians helped themselves to hundreds apiece, topped by Kambli's 224 at Mumbai. Gooch's series aggregate fell well short of that Lord's

England had another eight years to regroup, although England nicked the 1996 home series by 1-0. By December 2001, Nasser Hussain and Saurav Ganguly were the rival leaders and at Mohali there were shades of 1993 as India triumphed by ten wickets. Kumble and Harbhajan Singh took fifteen and Dasgupta outscored the now legendary quartet of Tendulkar, Dravid, Ganguly and Laxman with 100. By the time they moved on to Ahmedabad, Graeme Thorpe had gone home for personal reasons but Craig White (121) and Marcus Trescothick (99) gave England a first innings lead, but a draw ensued. Rain washed out half the Bangalore game, handing India the series.

In March 2006, England were ultra-confident after that Ashes summer. However, Michael Vaughan, Simon Jones, Marcus Trescothick and Ashley Giles were missing but, despite these key absences, Andrew Flintoff's team had the better of the First Test before India batted out a draw. A certain Alistair Cook made an impressive debut, scoring 60 and 104 not out. The following week at Mohali, Munaf Patel and Kumble spun India to a nine-wicket triumph but at Mumbai there was a famous England success. An Andrew Strauss century set the scene but an inspired Flintoff and Shaun Udal dismissed India on the final day to square the series.

At the end of 2008, the ODI series was curtailed by the horrific terror attacks on Mumbai, and England went home. However, they returned with honour to play two Tests.
Pietersen had controversially been named captain of the tourists but it was his successor Strauss who struck two centuries at Chennai. However, strokeplay from Sehwag, Tendulkar and Yuvraj Singh pulled it out of the bag on day five to win by six wickets. Mohali enjoyed a triple-century stand between Sehwag and Dravid but a KP 144 kept his side in the contest, but not enough to win the game. India were on their way to the number one spot, only to throw it away in England in 2011.

The two nations are now also-rans in the ICC league table but India fancy revenge after that debacle just over a year ago. Much has been said about England's vulnerability to spin and their relative paucity of quality spinners themselves. However, Derek Underwood apart, much of their success in India has been down to seamers from Old and Willis to Hoggard and Anderson. The latter, plus Finn, Broad and Bresnan could well emulate their mid-70s predecessors. We shall see....

VVS Laxman: The right time to go

I always feel a nip of exasperation whenever I read of, or hear about a cricketer saying the next Test/series will be his last. The ECB obviously feel the same, as KP will now testify. VVS Laxman's international obituary was inevitably being written once he announced that India's forthcoming series would be his last. Oh, and was he so sure that he'd even be selected?!

Following India's decisive fall from the Test pinnacle last year, much was written about the future of the big three batting legends, Tendulkar, Dravid and Laxman. Sachin remains sufficiently driven to continue a bit longer, 'The Wall' made the respected decision to retire immediately earlier this year but VVS kept everyone guessing, until now. I suspect that a few wise voices whispered in his ear that youth was to be the preferred option for the New Zealand series and, given his recent loss of form, legend number two called a halt to his international career. The Adelaide defeat thus becomes the final Test for both him and Dravid. At almost 38, I think he has made the right choice.

I must admit I don't think I recall seeing him play, so must rely the testament of others to his wristy skills and ability to compile breathtaking innings, often in adversity. The Cricinfo feature on Laxman's stats is a fascinating one . It states the case for VVS to be considered right up there amongst the best of them.

While his career average in 134 Tests sits just short of 46, with only 17 centuries, moderate by today's standards, Laxman 'suffered' by playing many games at five or six in the line-up and by failing to fill his boots against Bangladesh and Zimbabwe. However, only Steve Waugh and Shiv Chanderpaul have scored more runs than him batting at these positions. Since 1998, only Tendulkar has scored more runs against Australia than his 2,434 and, he is one of the few players to have a higher average in the second innings than his first. He ranks seven in the all-time list for second innings averages and the only Indian to beat him is not Tendulkar or Dravid but the great Sunil Gavaskar.

2000-2004 was his golden period when he held his own amongst a fabulous Indian batting line-up, particularly in Tests. If nothing else, he will forever remain in the pantheon of Test superstars for his astonishing 281 at Eden Gardens in March 2001. Not only did it end Australia's seemingly invincible status but was achieved when following on. He put on 376 for the fifth wicket with Dravid (who scored 180), defying McGrath, Warne, Gillespie and Kasprowicz in their pomp, and the resulting target of 384 proved beyond Steve Waugh;s team, arguably the most formidable Test XI in the last thirty years.

Who knows what VVS would have done against New Zealand this autumn? However, by calling time now, Laxman has ensured he will be remembered for the right reasons. Statistically he not be the equal of Tendulkar and Dravid but the man from Hyderabad has performed majestically and heroically for the Indian cause, leading some of the most remarkable fightbacks in history.

Sachin Tendulkar - Genius or Flat track bully?

So much has been said and written about Sachin Tendulkar over the years, and especially this past week, that there can't be much that remains. But I'll try! Not everyone has been eulogising over his talent. Some have poo-pooed his statistical achievements.

Is it surprising that he man who has played more international matches over the longest period will have compiled more centuries? Well, no, but it's hardly Sachin's fault that he was so precociously gifted at the age of 16 and has enjoyed almost continuous fitness and form ever since!

Of course he scores so many runs; it's because India has such perfect batting tracks. It is true that Tendulkar has played more Tests on home soil than in any other country but actually his centuries per Test percentage is equal home and away (27%) and his batting average is only slightly superior in India. Of course, his performances are as much about the opposition as the pitch and his own batsmanship. He started out in the late 1980s and '90s when India were far from one of the top nations they have been in recent years. The Windies and Australia were top dogs during much of his career, yet some of his best performances have come against the Aussies. True, he has an average of 68 in Sri Lanka yet a paltry (by his standards) 40 in neighbouring Pakistan, which usually boasts similar types of batting track.

All this got me thinking about other players. Do they favour Asian pitches or are they generally home birds, building their Test match reputations on home successes? It turns out there is quite a mix. Matthew Hayden was famously written off as a 'flat track bully', capable of hitting huge scores only on easy-paced pitches. However, I would argue that he probably just loved the sun on his back, scoring 21 of his 30 hundreds in Australia in only 56 Tests (that's a mighty fine 38% rate). He also did well in the West Indies and India but his batting average was 40 or below in Sri Lanka, England, South Africa and New Zealand.

Many top stars of today are similarly home-biased. Mahela Jayawardene, Shiv Chanderpaul, Kevin Pietersen (I mean England, not South Africa!) and Younis Khan all hail from different lands but all have far superior Test records on home territory. All but five of Virender Sehwag's 22 three-figure scores have come in Asia. In terms of centuries, Lara and Ponting have fairly even hundreds per match ratios at home and abroad (only just below Tendulkar's) but, unlike the Little Master, their batting averages away from home let them down. Graham Gooch was playing Test cricket into his 40s, aggregating 20 centuries in 118 matches but he, like Geoff Boycott before him, scored relatively few overseas.

So have there been any players who have a better century per match ratio in away series? Sunil Gavaskar famously held Indian sides together with his exploits against the dominant quicks of Australia and the Windies and hit three figures 18 times in only 60 Tests abroad, a ratio of 30%, better than Tendulkar's. Both Andrew Strauss and Alastair Cook have fared better overseas, too, thanks largely to their appetite for Ashes runs Down Under! Cook averages a hundred in every four Tests. Pretty good but not in the Tendulkar/Younis/Sangakkara class. However, Cook is only 27 and if he keeps going at his current rate into his late 30s, he could well end up matching Tendulkar, at least in Tests.

Other players to have scored more centuries per Test on foreign soil include Steve Waugh and Graeme Smith who, like Waugh, particularly enjoys English pitches, not known for being kind to batsmen. Strauss and co had better watch out this summer!

In conclusion, it's horses for courses. Most players tend to do better on home territory, whether on flat tracks or green tops. Can anyone match Tendulkar's record for Test centuries? Well, one man I have yet to mention is Jacques Kallis, The South African has only a slightly better record at home (where pitches often suit fast bowlers) than abroad, where his rate of hundreds per match is only slightly below Tendulkar's. He has reached three figures 42 times, nine short of the record holder but in 36 fewer matches! In his 37th year, it's not about whether Kallis could eventually match Tendulkar because he probably doesn't have enough years ahead of him at this level. Instead, it's more a case of what might have been. If South Africa had played as many games as India, it would probably be Kallis at the top of the pile in Test cricket. He is that good.

I haven't focussed on ODIs, of course. That is where Kallis suffers in comparison with Tendulkar and it is the aggregate of Test and one-day centuries that has made Sachin the outstanding all-round batsman of his era, home or abroad, brown or green, flat or bouncy, and however you bend the statistics, they all point to the Indian as the post-war greatest of them all.

Tendulkar's Century - the wait is over!

Hallelujah! A nudge off Shakib to square leg and the long wait for Sachin Tendulkar's hundredth international century is over. Blimey, there must be parts of the Sahara experiencing shorter droughts than this! Now we - and hopefully the Indian legend himself - can just relax and enjoy his batsmanship while we still can.

As I write, he is still at the crease near the end of India's ODI innings against Bangladesh and critics are already circling, saying his slow scoring rate has harmed his side's chances of winning. Who cares? Better to score 114 at almost 80 per 100 balls than 0 in one! It's only the Asia Cup, anyway! Oh, he's just been caught behind and receives the standing ovation he deserves. Others will enthuse about the greatness of the man and his place in sporting history, and of course so shall I!

However, even legends struggle sometimes and Tendulkar's year or so without that elusive hundredth ton pales into insignificance compared with the time it took to score his first in ODIs: 76 innings spanning almost five years. His first one-dayer for India came on 18th December in Pakistan, where he scored precisely zero (c Wasim Akram b Waqar Younis)! His next game, ten weeks later in New Zealand, again lasted a mere two balls with no runs. Two matches, two ducks, this sixteen year-old must be useless, eh? Fortunately, he was making a name for himself in Tests and had racked up seven centuries there by the time he made three figures in ODIs for the first time in September 1994. Not bad opposition, either. Against Australia in Colombo, he tonked Glenn McGrath out of the attack and gave Shane Warne a hard time, too, en route to a match-winning 110.

Once he got off the mark, the ODI centuries flowed more steadily, with eight more in the following two years. 1998 was particularly prolific, with nine in the calendar year, including four against the Aussies and three versus Zimbabwe. Today's is 'only' his 49th in ODIs, so another milestone beckons. The 50th Test ton came in January 2011 at Centurion where India lost heavily to South Africa, and that feels like eons ago.

His records just keep on mounting up and it would seem very unlikely that anyone could possibly match his achievements of a hundred hundreds. His nearest rival, Ricky Ponting, is way behind with 71, and would need a pretty amazing few years to catch up with Sachin before the years catch up with him. Jacques Kallis has 42 Test centuries, so could conceivably narrow the gap before retirement. Maybe the growth of T20s could breed a Gayle-like player who can clout centuries in the shortest format without the need to spend much more than an hour at the crease, let alone a day in a Test match. Therefore, reaching the ton of tons in one-dayes alone may not be a fanciful notion. Getting them in Tests and ODIs may be more difficult, although Alastair Cook, for one, may stand a chance. He has 19 in Tests and 4 in ODIs, and is 12 years younger than Tendulkar. AB De Villiers is only slightly older and has 26 to his name, thirteen in each format but, no, surely they won't reach the achievement of Sachin Tendulkar on 16th March 2012.

Anyway, these are mere statistics. His record as a humble man, on and off the pitch, simplay add to the qualities which have made him such a brilliant cricketer, possibly the greatest all-round batsman who ever lived, and arguably second only to Bradman amongst the best in the first-class game.

751 matches and almost 34,000 runs for India are even more impressive numbers but what next for Tendulkar? Will he follow Rahil Dravid into immediate retirement, or announce a date? Will he continue until form and selectors dictate otherwise? I don't know. There is another phenomenal target which beckons: 50,000 senior runs in first-class, List A and T20 cricket. He's fewer than 2000 short of that total. Perhaps today's century in Mirpur will free him of the nervous shackles and allow him to unleash the style and strength such that the runs will flow as quickly as they ever did. No matter. Even if he calls a halt at a press conference after this tournament, I would gladly join the rest of the world in another standing ovation to celebrate the Little Master and his life in cricket.