That cricket will get a grand share of Bollywood was apparent when superstar Shah Rukh Khan bought the Kolkata franchise of the Indian Premier League.
But other franchises had made their intentions evident by not falling behind, as Bollywood heartthrob Akshay Kumar has been signed on by the Delhi Daredevils as its brand ambassador.
The announcement was made at a ceremony in the Capital on Monday, which also featured the likes of captain and 'Icon player' Virender Sehwag, local lad Gautam Gambhir, Pakistan captain Shoaib Malik as well as Mohammad Asif; one of the premier fast bowlers in the world.
But the centre of attention of course was Akshay, who played down all talk of a rivalry with the other big IPL face from Bollywood, Shah Rukh Khan.
"Although I work in films, I am an ardent follower of sports, especially cricket. I am from Delhi, so you should be proud and keep movies and songs aside. Let's get together for the game," the star famous for his action stunts, said.
Sehwag, too, was confident that his team will put in a strong show in the tournament, and entertain while they are at it.
"My personal target will be to perform consistently in the Twenty20 games and I hope to do well for my team. I have to lead from the front," Sehwag, who hammered 319 in the recently concluded first Test against South Africa in Chennai, said.
"Bollywood has its own space, and so does cricket. But Twenty20 is a package made to entertain. Bollywood is the greatest entertainer for the Indian public. So marrying Bollywood with cricket promises more entertainment.
"The public wants full worth of his money spent for the game, and if a fan gets to watch his favourite movie star along with some great cricket, nothing like it," the flamboyant batsman added.
Monday, March 31, 2008
Friday, March 28, 2008
sehwag triple century..
A breathtaking triple-century from Virender Sehwag, by far the fastest in terms of balls faced (278), was the centrepiece as India utterly dominated proceedings on the third day at the MA Chidambaram Stadium. Sehwag scored 257 runs in the day, finishing it on 309, the same score he made at Multan back in 2004. The fusillade of strokes produced 108 runs between lunch and tea, and he shared in two double-hundred stands, another record.
After Wasim Jaffer had contributed 73 to an opening stand of 213, Rahul Dravid turned the strike over cleverly as the bowling was ground into the Chennai dust. By stumps, the partnership was worth 255, and Sehwag's heroics had opened up the possibility of a result on the final day. Though South Africa finished five overs short of the 90 that they were supposed to bowl in the day, India still managed a staggering 386 runs.
The five frontline bowlers toiled away with no reward on an unforgiving pitch and by stumps a couple of them were looking a little shell-shocked and dispirited. Sehwag took just 78 balls for his second hundred, and 84 for the third, and by then any illusion of a contest between bat and ball had long since been shattered.
South Africa couldn't be faulted for commitment, and their fielding was always tidy, but there was simply nothing in the pitch or atmosphere to inspire a breakthrough. Makhaya Ntini was given a proper pasting and the raw pace of Dale Steyn and Morne Morkel was similarly ineffectual against a batsman at the top of his game. Paul Harris wheeled away for several long spells but though there was the odd lull, Sehwag cover-drove, paddl- swept and reverse-swept with impunity when the chance presented itself.
Dravid started very slowly, but he too grew in confidence as the day wore on, playing some lovely strokes on the leg side as the bowlers started to err in line. His 50 took him 151 balls, but such was Sehwag's mastery over proceedings that the partnership run-rate was nearly five an over.
A huge straight six off Harris took Sehwag to 297, and a tuck off the pads off Ntini soon after got him to 300. The crowd, nearly 30,000, went berserk and everyone in the dressing room was on their feet. With the over-rate so sluggish and Sehwag so intimidating, Smith didn't even take the second new ball, opting to fill in overs with the likes of Ashwell Prince.
Harris had the only success of the day, snaring Jaffer after switching to round the wicket. Jaffer's had been the perfect anchor role, and when he flirted at one outside off stump that actually turned a little, Jacques Kallis took a fine catch low at slip. His departure didn't faze Sehwag in the slightest though. Morkel was taken for 13 in an over, and Harris too suffered a similar fate as he cruised into the 190s.
A massive six over long leg off Ntini took him to 199 and a ball later, a twirl of the wrists sent the ball speeding through midwicket. At the other end, Dravid needed to do no more than pinch the odd single, and Sehwag went in for a cup of tea after having flayed Ntini for a six and two fours in the final over of the session. It was his tentth successive hundred in excess of 150, an unprecedented feat, and it must have made the selectors who dropped him from the Test side cringe more than a little.
India had started the day as though they meant business, with Jaffer pulling Ntini for four, and Smith was soon forced into an early change. Steyn bowled at lively pace, but the pick of the bowlers was Morkel, who sent a couple of deliveries thudding through at express pace and beat the outside edge more than once. But apart from a Jaffer edge that fell well short of Mark Boucher, there weren't even half-chances to encourage the bowlers. Jaffer eventually got to his 50 from 107 balls, more than content to paddle in Sehwag's wake.
Harris came on after an hour and his tactics against Sehwag were simple - just drop the ball on a length well outside leg stump. Sehwag was content to ignore most of them, though on occasion he did make room to drive forcefully through the off side. There was also a powerful reverse-sweep that sped behind point for four.
The century was raised in typically thrilling fashion. Having slammed Kallis over midwicket to get to 99, he then lofted him straight back over his head to get to three figures. It had taken him just 116 balls, and it reduced South Africa to seeking damage control rather than wickets. Once again, Sehwag's greatest strength, his ability to put away both the bad and not-so-bad balls, was in ample evidence.
A couple of balls from Harris did seem to unleash puffs of dust from the pitch, a development that would have been watched with keen interest by Anil Kumble and Harbhajan Singh. That though was in the future, with India seemingly intent on batting well into the fourth day. As long as Sehwag was out there, the possibilities were limitless.
The Last Samurai
One moment typified Virender Sehwag's buccaneering masterclass on the third day in Chennai. He had led a stunning fightback, just brought up his 100th run for the
Some batsmen take into account the nature of the pitch, time of day, phase of innings, and quality of the bowler. Sehwag prefers to have only one parameter in mind: type of delivery. This was batting reduced to its simplest form. As the Last Samurai postulates: "the highest level of martial and spiritual skill is only attainable through No Mind".
Batsmen normally talk of cashing in on featherbeds, making sure they thrive when the going is good. Sehwag doesn't seem to really care. He has often talked about not looking at a pitch before a game and rarely alters his approach according to the surface. He has taken a different approach according to match situations - his match-saving hundred in the previous Test in Adelaide showed as much - but conditions don't seem to matter. When he's as balanced at the crease as this, there's little to stop him.
In the three Tests since his Test comeback it's pretty clear that he's worked on his on-side game. His struggles at the Test level coincided with the time when he tried to back away and swat most balls to the off side but he's obviously worked on the clip to leg - the shot where he gets up on his toes and turns it towards square leg. He's brought back the hoick and has now started to again loft powerfully over cover. It's helped that he's got fitter, shedding some fat around the waist-line.
It's also interesting that the two occasions when he's consulted a mental conditioner have been followed up with brutal innings. The blistering 180 on the first day in Gros Islet came on the back of a chat with Rudi Webster, the renowned sports psychologist, and this knock was preceded by a lengthy interaction with Paddy Upton. Sehwag has often said that his one-day failures are mainly because of too many parameters coming into play - number of overs, run-rate, Powerplays and the like - and it's the Test arena that he enjoys the most.
His last ten hundreds have all been 150-plus knocks, a trot unlike any other batsman in Test history. He joined Brian Lara and Don Bradman as the only two batsmen to cross 300 twice. He may not be mentioned in the same league as those two legends - not as yet - but like them he remains a man apart.
Some batsmen take into account the nature of the pitch, time of day, phase of innings, and quality of the bowler. Sehwag prefers to have only one parameter in mind: type of delivery. This was batting reduced to its simplest form. As the Last Samurai postulates: "the highest level of martial and spiritual skill is only attainable through No Mind".
Batsmen normally talk of cashing in on featherbeds, making sure they thrive when the going is good. Sehwag doesn't seem to really care. He has often talked about not looking at a pitch before a game and rarely alters his approach according to the surface. He has taken a different approach according to match situations - his match-saving hundred in the previous Test in Adelaide showed as much - but conditions don't seem to matter. When he's as balanced at the crease as this, there's little to stop him.
In the three Tests since his Test comeback it's pretty clear that he's worked on his on-side game. His struggles at the Test level coincided with the time when he tried to back away and swat most balls to the off side but he's obviously worked on the clip to leg - the shot where he gets up on his toes and turns it towards square leg. He's brought back the hoick and has now started to again loft powerfully over cover. It's helped that he's got fitter, shedding some fat around the waist-line.
It's also interesting that the two occasions when he's consulted a mental conditioner have been followed up with brutal innings. The blistering 180 on the first day in Gros Islet came on the back of a chat with Rudi Webster, the renowned sports psychologist, and this knock was preceded by a lengthy interaction with Paddy Upton. Sehwag has often said that his one-day failures are mainly because of too many parameters coming into play - number of overs, run-rate, Powerplays and the like - and it's the Test arena that he enjoys the most.
His last ten hundreds have all been 150-plus knocks, a trot unlike any other batsman in Test history. He joined Brian Lara and Don Bradman as the only two batsmen to cross 300 twice. He may not be mentioned in the same league as those two legends - not as yet - but like them he remains a man apart.
'ICC must get best players play in IPL'
Leg-spin great Shane Warne on Friday said the International Cricket Council should ensure that the world's top players who got signed up with the Indian Premier League play in the "revolutionary" Twenty20 venture.
Talking to newspersons after the official launch of the Jaipur franchisee team Rajasthan Royals, Warne rubbished the notion that IPL would have negative influence in international cricket.
"It is a new and revolutionary concept and if ICC uses a little common sense it can co-exist with international cricket," he said.
"ICC should accommodate IPL in the international calendar and ensure that best players of the cricketing world play in it. It would make the IPL more colourful and competitive," Warne, who would be the captain-cum-coach of the team said.
The Australian, who has 708 Test wickets in his kitty, felt IPL would do a lot of good to the young cricketers instead of having negative effect on them.
"They are getting the money and also chance to play along with great players of the world."
Warne would not also agree that spinners have little role to play in the shortest version of cricket.
"Though Twenty20 is called batsman's game, bowlers can turn it around. Yes, spinners will be hit but often we saw good performance by them too. They have evolved and I feel they certainly have a big role in this format of cricket too," said Warne.
Is Rajasthan Royals the weakest team in the fray in the eight-team League? Warne would not agree, saying, "Yes, we don't have Sachin (Tendulkar), but still we have Younis Khan, Graeme Smith apart from few youngsters in our ranks. I feel we have an exciting team, we have a balanced team."
"It is a question of extracting the best from the team members. It is the responsibility of the players to perform to their potential."
When asked whether his role of captain-cum-coach will work, Warne replied that it had worked for Hampshire where he was shouldering both the responsibilities till deciding to quit first class cricket Thursday.
"I feel it is good as instead of two or three voices you have only one voice in the team. It had worked pretty good. I had combined the two roles in Hampshire and the team reached two finals in four years which was not bad."
Warne does not think that sledging would be an issue during the Twenty20 tournament starting on April 18 and added that he would welcome any role for former India coach Greg Chappell in his IPL team.
Talking to newspersons after the official launch of the Jaipur franchisee team Rajasthan Royals, Warne rubbished the notion that IPL would have negative influence in international cricket.
"It is a new and revolutionary concept and if ICC uses a little common sense it can co-exist with international cricket," he said.
"ICC should accommodate IPL in the international calendar and ensure that best players of the cricketing world play in it. It would make the IPL more colourful and competitive," Warne, who would be the captain-cum-coach of the team said.
The Australian, who has 708 Test wickets in his kitty, felt IPL would do a lot of good to the young cricketers instead of having negative effect on them.
"They are getting the money and also chance to play along with great players of the world."
Warne would not also agree that spinners have little role to play in the shortest version of cricket.
"Though Twenty20 is called batsman's game, bowlers can turn it around. Yes, spinners will be hit but often we saw good performance by them too. They have evolved and I feel they certainly have a big role in this format of cricket too," said Warne.
Is Rajasthan Royals the weakest team in the fray in the eight-team League? Warne would not agree, saying, "Yes, we don't have Sachin (Tendulkar), but still we have Younis Khan, Graeme Smith apart from few youngsters in our ranks. I feel we have an exciting team, we have a balanced team."
"It is a question of extracting the best from the team members. It is the responsibility of the players to perform to their potential."
When asked whether his role of captain-cum-coach will work, Warne replied that it had worked for Hampshire where he was shouldering both the responsibilities till deciding to quit first class cricket Thursday.
"I feel it is good as instead of two or three voices you have only one voice in the team. It had worked pretty good. I had combined the two roles in Hampshire and the team reached two finals in four years which was not bad."
Warne does not think that sledging would be an issue during the Twenty20 tournament starting on April 18 and added that he would welcome any role for former India coach Greg Chappell in his IPL team.
Friday, March 7, 2008
cricket controversies
Two events last week have left cricket lovers all over the world disappointed.
South Africa pulling out of the Unitech Cup
A player who fears for his life can’t really play cricket! But the South Africans may have over-estimated the danger: there are over 1000 athletes competing in the SAF games being held in the island. This event has been surrounded with controversy: rumors rife about the differences among the members of the squad, the improper security review by the ICC appointed agency etc. In these circumstances you really cannot fault a team for pulling out. Although, I don’t think the South Africans would have pulled out if they were touring England when 7/7 happened.
The farce at the Oval
Pakistan accused of ball tampering, they refuse to come out after tea, umpires award the match to England and when Pakis are ready to play, the umpires led refused to budge. And surprise one of the umpires was: Darrell-”Murali Chucks”-Hair, a man who loves his controversy. Pakistan’s protest did not keep the best interest of the game at heart. You must be out of your mind to expect that you can hold up the game and come back on the field and play as you choose. Also, I think a complete inquiry is in order and umpires must be held accountable under these circumstances. There is no love lost between the Pakis and Darrell Hair and to be honest I would only be too happy to see the back of that man!
It has to be said that as of this moment there is no video evidence of Pakistanis actually tampering the ball but according to various journalists, the ball did seem pretty disfigured on one side. That said, what was the ICC doing when the whole controversy broke out? Somebody should have taken charge.I don’t think any other sport is so dominated by the sports boards of the members.
This is absolutely unprecedented; in over 130 years of Test Cricket this is the first time that a team has actually gone so far as to forfeit a match. The next week promises to be rather fascinating as the inept ICC tries to bring the whole situation under control. Watch this space for updates!
-Prof
South Africa pulling out of the Unitech Cup
A player who fears for his life can’t really play cricket! But the South Africans may have over-estimated the danger: there are over 1000 athletes competing in the SAF games being held in the island. This event has been surrounded with controversy: rumors rife about the differences among the members of the squad, the improper security review by the ICC appointed agency etc. In these circumstances you really cannot fault a team for pulling out. Although, I don’t think the South Africans would have pulled out if they were touring England when 7/7 happened.
The farce at the Oval
Pakistan accused of ball tampering, they refuse to come out after tea, umpires award the match to England and when Pakis are ready to play, the umpires led refused to budge. And surprise one of the umpires was: Darrell-”Murali Chucks”-Hair, a man who loves his controversy. Pakistan’s protest did not keep the best interest of the game at heart. You must be out of your mind to expect that you can hold up the game and come back on the field and play as you choose. Also, I think a complete inquiry is in order and umpires must be held accountable under these circumstances. There is no love lost between the Pakis and Darrell Hair and to be honest I would only be too happy to see the back of that man!
It has to be said that as of this moment there is no video evidence of Pakistanis actually tampering the ball but according to various journalists, the ball did seem pretty disfigured on one side. That said, what was the ICC doing when the whole controversy broke out? Somebody should have taken charge.I don’t think any other sport is so dominated by the sports boards of the members.
This is absolutely unprecedented; in over 130 years of Test Cricket this is the first time that a team has actually gone so far as to forfeit a match. The next week promises to be rather fascinating as the inept ICC tries to bring the whole situation under control. Watch this space for updates!
-Prof
Sunday, March 2, 2008
Mahendra Singh Dhoni
Mahendra Singh Dhoni or MS Dhoni (born July 7, 1981 in Ranchi, Jharkhand) is an Indian cricketer and the current captain of the Indian Twenty20 and ODI team. Under his captaincy, India won the 2007 ICC World Twenty20.
Dhoni is an aggressive right-handed batsman and wicket-keeper. Dhoni is one of the wicket-keepers who have come through the ranks of junior and India A cricket teams to represent the national team - Parthiv Patel, Ajay Ratra and Dinesh Karthik being the others. Dhoni, referred to as 'Mahi' by his friends, debuted in the Bihar cricket team during the 1998/99 cricket season and was selected to represent India-A for a tour to Kenya in 2004. Along with Gautam Gambhir, Dhoni made multiple centuries against the Pakistan-A team in a tri-nation series and was selected in the Indian national team later in that year.
Dhoni scored 148 against Pakistan in his fifth ODI match in 2005 - then the highest score by an Indian wicketkeeper. Later in the year, he broke his own record as well as set the current world record for the highest score in the second innings in ODI matches as he scored 183* against Sri Lanka. Dhoni's success in the limited overs format secured him a place in the test team and coincidentally he made his maiden test century in his fifth Test match, when he scored 148 against Pakistan. Consistent performances in ODI cricket through the end of the 2005/06 season saw Dhoni ranked as the No. 1 batsman in the ICC ODI ratings briefly.
Dhoni's form dipped through 2006 as India lost matches at the ICC Champions trophy, DLF Cup, away bilateral series against West Indies and South Africa. A return to form in the home series against West Indies and Sri Lanka in early 2007 proved to be an inaccurate indicator of Dhoni's form as India crashed out of the first round in the 2007 Cricket World Cup. Dhoni was out for duck in both India's losses. After the World Cup, Dhoni won the Man of the series award in the bilateral ODI tournament against Bangladesh. For the tour of England, Dhoni was named the ODI team vice-captain.
A powerful hitter of the ball, Dhoni has shown the maturity to restrain his aggressive nature and play a responsible innings when the situation requires. Apart from traditional shots, Dhoni has two very unorthodox but effective cricket strokes. Since his entry into the Indian cricket team, Dhoni's aggressive batting style, success on the field, personality, and long hair have made him one of the most marketable cricketers in IndiaIPL takes Bollywood to the cricket field..
Cricket in India has yet again attracted top dollar, this time for the Indian Premier League (IPL). In the process, BCCI has ensured that Mukesh Ambani will lock horns with Vijay Mallya while Shah Rukh Khan will face off against Preity Zinta as their teams take to the field.
The Reliance Industries chairman has acquired the Mumbai franchise in IPL for $111.9 million over a 10-year period while the flamboyant chairman of UB Group has won the Bengaluru franchise for $111.6 million. Both Mr Ambani and Mr Mallya had bid more than twice the floor price of $50 million per franchise set by the board. SRK’s Red Chillies Entertainment won the Kolkata franchise for $75 million.
The biggest surprise was the Chandigarh franchise, which went to Preity Zinta and Ness Wadia, together with Apeejay Surrendra’s Karan Paul and Dabur scion Mohit Burman for $75 million.
IPL is yet another show of strength for cricket. Originally conceived as a riposte to Subhash Chandra’s rebel Indian Cricket League, IPL is set to become the biggest money-spinner in cricket today. The league has been modelled on other professional sports leagues like the English Premier League (EPL) and National Basketball Association (NBA).
But in the years to come, it will emulate EPL and NBA when it comes to trading players and club buyouts. Some of the biggest names in international cricket today, such as Ricky Ponting, Kumar Sangakkara and Sachin Tendulkar, have all signed up to play in IPL, and so have Shane Warne and Glenn McGrath. The top 80 players in the ICC rankings will be playing in IPL, according to BCCI officials.
IPL is also further proof that, in spite of a few blips, cricket still rules the roost for marketers, who want visibility for their brands. Just over two years ago, BCCI had raised a total of $945 million in media, kit and team sponsorship over four years from Nimbus, Nike and Sahara, respectively. This amount has already been eclipsed by the revenues that IPL will generate for BCCI over 10 years (but much lesser cricket time). In all, the board has raked in nearly $724 million from the franchise bids alone, and adding income from media, IPL has fetched it nearly $1.75 billion (approx. Rs 7,000 crore). This amount can only go up once the bids for title and shirt sponsorships come in.
The Reliance Industries chairman has acquired the Mumbai franchise in IPL for $111.9 million over a 10-year period while the flamboyant chairman of UB Group has won the Bengaluru franchise for $111.6 million. Both Mr Ambani and Mr Mallya had bid more than twice the floor price of $50 million per franchise set by the board. SRK’s Red Chillies Entertainment won the Kolkata franchise for $75 million.
The biggest surprise was the Chandigarh franchise, which went to Preity Zinta and Ness Wadia, together with Apeejay Surrendra’s Karan Paul and Dabur scion Mohit Burman for $75 million.
IPL is yet another show of strength for cricket. Originally conceived as a riposte to Subhash Chandra’s rebel Indian Cricket League, IPL is set to become the biggest money-spinner in cricket today. The league has been modelled on other professional sports leagues like the English Premier League (EPL) and National Basketball Association (NBA).
But in the years to come, it will emulate EPL and NBA when it comes to trading players and club buyouts. Some of the biggest names in international cricket today, such as Ricky Ponting, Kumar Sangakkara and Sachin Tendulkar, have all signed up to play in IPL, and so have Shane Warne and Glenn McGrath. The top 80 players in the ICC rankings will be playing in IPL, according to BCCI officials.
IPL is also further proof that, in spite of a few blips, cricket still rules the roost for marketers, who want visibility for their brands. Just over two years ago, BCCI had raised a total of $945 million in media, kit and team sponsorship over four years from Nimbus, Nike and Sahara, respectively. This amount has already been eclipsed by the revenues that IPL will generate for BCCI over 10 years (but much lesser cricket time). In all, the board has raked in nearly $724 million from the franchise bids alone, and adding income from media, IPL has fetched it nearly $1.75 billion (approx. Rs 7,000 crore). This amount can only go up once the bids for title and shirt sponsorships come in.
Saturday, March 1, 2008
don bradman-the god of cricket
Sir Donald George Bradman, AC (27 August 1908—25 February 2001), often called The Don, was an Australian cricketer, generally acknowledged as the greatest batsman of all time. Later in his career he was an administrator and writer on the game. Bradman is one of Australia's most popular sporting heroes, and one of the most respected past players in other cricketing nations. His career Test batting average of 99.94 is by many measures the greatest statistical performance in any major sport.
The story of the young Don practising alone with a cricket stump and a golf ball is part of Australian folklore. Bradman’s meteoric rise from bush cricket to the Australian Test team took just over two years. Before his 22nd birthday, he set myriad records for high scoring (many of which stand even today) and became Australia's sporting idol at the height of the Great Depression. A controversial set of tactics, known as Bodyline, were devised by the England team to curb his batting brilliance.
During a twenty-year career, Bradman consistently scored at a level that made him "worth three batsmen to Australia". Committed to attacking, entertaining cricket, Bradman drew spectators in record numbers. He found the constant adulation an anathema, however, and it affected how he dealt with others. The focus of attention on his individual performances strained relationships with some team-mates, administrators and journalists, who thought him aloof and wary. After World War II, he made a dramatic comeback and in his final season captained an Australian team known as "The Invincibles". RC Robertson-Glasgow wrote of the English reaction to Bradman's retirement that, "... a miracle has been removed from among us. So must ancient Italy have felt when she heard of the death of Hannibal."
A complex, highly-driven man, not given to close personal relationships, Bradman maintained his pre-eminence by acting as an administrator, selector and writer for three decades following his retirement. His opinion was highly sought, but, in his declining years, he became very reclusive. However, his status as a national icon was still recognised, with previous Prime Minister of Australia, John Howard, calling him the "greatest living Australian". His image has appeared on postage stamps and coins, and he became the first living Australian to have a museum dedicated to his life.
Cricket controversies
I was watching this cricket discussion on television on the topic whether Saurav Ganguly should be replaced as the captain of the Indian cricket team or not. Well, I normally do not comment about cricket considering my knowledge of the game is limited to being a fan of the Australian Team especially when they are playing test matches. But I would really suggest that Rahul Dravid should be made the captain of the Test side with Saurav captaining the One-Day side.
Reason being, Saurav Ganguly can concentrate and score some runs in test matches instead of commenting on the wicket and the attitude of the opposition. And Rahul Dravid would have one less job to handle along with wicketkeeping and Vice Captaincy in One-Day matches. This would work only if they continue to with a specialist wicketkeeper in Test Matches coz I do not think they would risk with one in One Day matches. Another thing I would be recommending is to fix the minimum number of domestic matches every player (be it Sachin ENDulkar) has to play for his state. Number should of course be greater than 10.
On the similar note… I think Trevor Chesterfield has got a very feminine voice… I have read his articles in Indian Express but his voice was a shock when I heard it on the NDTV show.
sachin's biography
Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar(born 24 April, 1973 in Bombay, Maharashtra, India) is a record-breaking Indian cricketer who is widely regarded as one of the greatest batsmen in the history of cricket.[1][2][3] In 2002, Wisden rated him as the second greatest Test batsman after Sir Donald Bradman, and the second greatest One-day international batsman behind Sir Vivian Richards. In 2003, this list was revised where Tendulkar was ranked No. 1 and Richards at No. 2.[4]
He holds several highly regarded batting records and is the leading scorer of centuries in both Test cricket and one-day internationals. He is one of the three batsmen to surpass 11,000 runs in Test cricket, and the first Indian to do so.[5] He is the most prolific run scorer in ODIs by a margin of over 4000 runs and has scored the most runs in international cricket as a whole. He crossed 16,000 runs in ODIs on February 5, 2008 while playing against Sri Lanka in Brisbane, Australia. Affectionately called 'The Little Master' or 'The Master Blaster',[6][7][8] Tendulkar made his first-class debut for the Mumbai cricket team aged 14 and scored a century on debut. He made his international test debut in 1989 against Pakistan in Karachi at age 16.
He is the only cricketer to receive the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna, India's highest sporting honour and the only cricketer and one of the first sportsmen (along with Vishwanathan Anand) to receive the Padma Vibhushan (2008), the second highest civilian honour of India. He is the most sponsored player in world cricket and has a huge fan following even amongst foreign audiences. Tendulkar has made numerous commercial ventures including opening a chain of restaurants in India.
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