Even at a time when Indian cricket was struggling and when Australia, with all their might, was bulldozing teams across all conditions, a certain Sachin Tendulkar stood tall and saw them in the eye and dominated them.
Shane Warne, the man who heaped misery on batsmen all around the world, was often rendered helpless and now, Brett Lee has revealed that Tendulkar collared Warne like no one else.
“He (Tendulkar) used to advance down the wicket a few times and invited Warne to bowl a fraction too short. Sometimes, he would wait patiently on the back foot and play those beautiful shots,” said Lee on Star Sports Cricket Connected.
Lee also went on to add that not many batsmen troubled and left Shane Warne clueless, but Sachin was cut from a different cloth and his genius always left him flustered.
“It was almost like he was playing cat and mouse with Warne and not many batsmen can play cat and mouse with Shane Warne because he’s so talented. But on days, Sachin Tendulkar was toying with Warne and that does not happen often,” he added.
Warne Conceded He Was Trumped By A Superior Batsman
Brett Lee also mentions that Warne always took pride in being able to compete with the best and then bamboozle them, but he, for all his skills and tricks, could not get on top of Sachin and this riled him.
Warne, in the past, has also conceded that Sachin read him the best and the way he used his feet against him was unparalleled and hence, he could never bog him down.
“There were times when Warne would try and get the trajectory a bit different through the air and sometimes, he would try and get a few balls to drop. Every time he would try the subtle variations, there was only Sachin who would pick them up,” Lee said.
Sachin vs Warne Competition Was Intense
Sachin vs Warne was the biggest ticket during India-Australia encounters. These were two champion players, two match-winners trying to stamp their authority over one another, and while, Sachin did come out on top, Warne and his records are a testament to the fact, that stumbling blocks and how one responds to few slip-ups eventually determines the journey and the result.
In a glittering career, Warne dismissed Sachin Tendulkar only on four occasions in 29 international encounters. The fizzing leg-spin and the dancing shoes – cricket is only poorer in their absence.
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