On the occasion of his birthday, on April 24, master batsman Sachin Tendulkar was interviewed on
Star Sports by Ravi Shastri and Harsha Bhogle. Follows, the transcript of the conversation.Harsha - Things change don't they? People grow up and we all do. Sachin Tendulkar turns 30 and here we are putting a special programme wishing him a happy birthday!
Sachin When I was 15, I started playing first class cricket and always dreamt of being a Test cricketer; wanted to do something for the country, married in 1995, have two kids it's been great.
Ravi
Do you allow your kids to win the game, cause I remember once you chased me around the park because you lost the table tennis game.Sachin That is the only place where I don't mind losing.
Harsha- But the World Cup was different, wasn't it?
Ravi The World Cup was an outstanding event for you what was the preparations like. Because your form was ordinary during that time. Did you make any changes like going for lighter bats?
Sachin- Things did not work out in New Zealand, cause we were playing on difficult tracks. I twisted my ankle before the first match, but my first practice match was in South Africa and I scored 50 - 55 runs. Things changed in the evening when it was decided that I'll be opening and that was a new chapter for me, a challenge, so I wanted to prove myself and the World Cup was a great occasion.
Ravi You batted freely and played lot of shots. Was the lighter bat a reason?
Sachin- It wasn't the weight of the bat; it was the weight distribution of the bat. In India, Sri Lanka and Pakistan, where the pitch doesn't offer much bounce, bats are made heavier at the bottom, so I went for a different weight distribution, cause in South Africa the ball bounces a lot.
Harsha You got a bat here, why don't you show us that?
Sachin Batsman in Asia prefer weights at the bottom, but I asked the manufactures for weight distribution because South African wickets are bouncy and I get power even at the top of the bat and the pick up was light too.
Ravi Sachin, what goes on between you and Glenn McGrath?
Sachin Well I was teaching him some Hindi songs (laughs!). Actually he attacked a little outside and placed more fielders on off side, so I said: 'Are you scared? Why don't you attack inside in the wicket.' . But it was a friendly conversation and I wanted to pass the message.
Harsha Well, we asked the coach what was the turning point in World Cup?
John Wright [quote] The Zimbabwe game was the key and Sachin led the batting attack from the front.
Ravi It was the game against England from when Sachin started batting like a bomb.
Harsha - You wanted to prove a point against Andrew Caddick
Sachin I didn't want to prove a point, cause bowlers always want to make a statement, and my job is to go out and score runs for India. We defeated England in the NatWest and also in Sri Lanka, but it's was a psychological game and I wanted to settle a score because memories of losing at Wankhede stadium were there.
Harsha - That six to Caddick was indicative of your top form...
Sachin - The Durban pitch gives you a lot of bounce and I picked up the line early.
Harsha - You could have played that shot anywhere else
Sachin - I don't think so.
Harsha - That was a candid confession let's take break, but on the way there are people who want to say exactly what we want to say: Happy Birthday, Sachin!
Shaun Pollock
[quote] - I hope when you play against us you get only a score of 30 and not anything more than that.Amitabh Bachchan
[quote] - Happy Birthday, Sachin; let the remaining 70 years be more eventful!Lata Mangeshkar
[quote] - Humare main kehtay hain ke bhagwan dharti par chamatkaar bhejtaay hain, Sachin Bhi Ek Ajooba hai, ek chmatkaar hai aur main usko namakar kartee hoon [We believe that God, from time to time, sends wonders. Sachin is one such wonder. I greet him.]Sachin - I am speechless; I don't know how to react.
Harsha Sometimes when you don't react (it) is a reaction itself; here is a special one for the big game, India - Pakistan.
Sidhu
[quote] - Tendulkar was a catalyst in the victory of India in the Pakistan game.Ravi Very rarely it happens that [Wasim] Akram doesn't know where to bowl.
Sachin But he is a great bowler. I remember, in Sharjah, when he was suffering from a groin strain, still he bowled all his 10 overs with great control, off the shorter run-up.
Ravi Let's come to that Pakistan game. 272 was a big target, what was on you mind?
Sachin My first strategy was not to give any wickets in first five to six overs, because first 10 overs were important. But the sound of first contact in that innings boosted my confidence.
Ravi
We thought you should have opted for a runner when you were around 75...Sachin I never played with a runner in my entire life; even in school, because only I know where the ball is going, and how hard, when I hit the ball, something my runner will never know about. The moment there is contact your subconscious mind knows whether it's a single or more. It's that fraction of contact that matters.
Ravi Hang on, you have something on Schumacher.
Sachin In formula racing everybody takes off in between the 4th and 5th light just before the green light comes on and that fraction is decisive.
Harsha Nothing personnel with Shoaib?
Sachin I never made any statements and I don't want to do it.
Harsha Maybe, the memories of Kolkata, 1999?
Sachin I cannot let my mind be disturbed by these things. In fact, I don't want to be dragged into these things. It is my job to make runs for the country and win. That is the job I have to do.
Harsha It's interesting when you say India must win. Something about that famous huddle in the World Cup.
Sachin We had a tough time in New Zealand. We met up with Sandy Gordon [the psychologist], and then there was a thought that the team has to get together.
Harsha Pumping hearts... my heart is pumping because we are going to meet someone very special.. Very few have actually seen this clip.
Bradman
[quote] - There is a similarity between both of us, the way we play.Ravi That was from the legend, who is the ultimate!
Harsha How do you feel about it?
Sachin It's the big name and it cannot get any better than this.
Ravi You have achieved everything, but what makes Sachin Tendulkar really tick?
Sachin I hate losing, and cricket being my first love, once I enter the ground it's a different zone altogether and that hunger for winning is always there.
Harsha Where do you see this hunger taking you?
Sachin Haven't really thought of it. All I wanted to do was, to go on and on; it's hard to imagine life without cricket.
Ravi He was a naughty boy. Remember, you use to steal mangoes...
Sachin That's how my cricket career started. We were plucking mangoes and we realized that all the senior citizens are busy watching 'Guide' movie; we thought it was a golden opportunity to finish off all the mangoes on the tree. But we came down with the tree. My brother watched me, and said: 'Enough is enough, let's get to serious cricket.' . And my cricket career started. So if you want to play for your country, start climbing mango trees and plucking mangoes!
Ravi Sachin, you are a global superstar, but always keep your feet on the ground like you always do...
Harsha - Just be a nice guy, wish you a very Happy Birthday!!
