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Wednesday, October 29, 2008

Sachin upset by lack of respect for the seniors

Zeecric Bureau

New Delhi, Oct 29: Sachin Tendulkar finally opened his mouth in the whole ‘junior-senior’ debate that has been dogging Indian cricket for some time.

Taking a firm stand on the whole issue, the Master batsman, who has recently broke Brain Lara’s record to become the highest scorer in Test cricket, said the seniors including him would decide the place and time of their retirement.

“The seniors including myself will decide the time and place of retirement”, said Sachin.

In an interview to a private news channel, Sachin also said, “The lack of respect towards the seniors does not happen anywhere”.

"We all know when to move away from the sport. But people have their opinions. Sometimes these opinions are not correct. But still one is made to believe that yes this is the right opinion and all kinds.”

"I think this should be left to an individual. Having said this, we have played enough to know exactly when to move away from the game. The individuals will take their decisions when feel it`s the right time," said the batting maestro.

“It’s only in this country that not enough respect is shown to the seniors who made major contributions”, Sachin added.

Tendulkar thought there was not a single player in the team who believed that if he was not enjoying the game he would still stick around. "I don`t think there is a single individual like that in the team".

He also categorically said that he was surprised to learn Sourav Ganguly’s decision to quit cricket at this juncture of his career.

"I am sure it must have taken him a long time to reach there. And it`s a big decision. But if he feels that it is the way to go, then we all should respect," Tendulkar said.

Asked why he chose to skip the Twenty20 World Cup last year, Tendulkar said, "I felt my body was not up to it. I was struggling a bit with my body and If I am not able to give my best, I should not be a part of it. Because it is going to be a fast game and I don`t want to be those players inside where captain is trying to protect me from this and that."

"I wanted the team to go out there and give their best without thinking me as a sort of handicap for them and I felt I was not in a position to give my best. I don`t want the team to think about my injury but focus on how to get the cup back home," he said.

On the emotional aspect of playing in front of Mumbai crowd, he said, "That`s where I grew up and there are plenty of friends sitting in the stands and so it`s different. I can`t deny that I have got support from all over the country, got affection and love. But Mumbai is something different."

Tendulkar praised ODI captain MS Dhoni for possessing a balanced head and sharp mind.

"He got a balanced head on and off the field and I think he has got a sharp mind. His situational awareness is very good and that the quality that I noticed quite early in him."

Asked about his suggestion of Dhoni`s name when Rahul Dravid stepped down from captaincy, Tendulkar said, "I have never talked on this publicly. I conveyed to the president Mr Pawar at that time and also to Dilip Vengsarkar. I don`t believe in talking about certain things publicly.

He also does not think that his batting form dipped during his stint as India captain.

"It was media who projected it wrongly and if you go back and see my record as a captain I was averaging 51. It was projected as if I am not scoring runs. In some 20 games I have scored 700-800 runs and I averaged 51," he said.

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