NEW DELHI: Indian legend Sachin Tendulkar had many rivalries with bowlers during his illustrious career, and in a recent Reddit 'Ask Me Anything' (AMA) session with fans, he recalled his greatest on-field duels - against Australian greats Glenn McGrath and the late spin maestro Shane Warne.
A fan quizzed Sachin on whether he had ever intentionally played a false shot just to disrupt a bowler's rhythm.
"Yes, on many occasions I have played risky shots to break the bowler's rhythm. The one that comes to my mind is against McGrath in Nairobi in 2000," Sachin responded to the query.
For context, Sachin was talking about the 2000 ICC KnockOut Trophy quarter-final against Australia, where he put on a 66-run opening stand with Sourav Ganguly. He scored 38 off 37 balls, striking two fours and three sixes off McGrath. India eventually sealed a 20-run victory, driven by debutant Yuvraj Singh's brilliant 84 off 80 balls.
Sachin's remarkable career was also marked by several controversial decisions, many of them involving West Indian umpire Steve Bucknor. When asked to comment on him, the legend tickled his funny bone, saying: "When I am batting, give him boxing gloves to wear so he can't raise his finger."
Sachin also reminisced about the moment he realised that the gifted Joe Root was destined to become a key player for England and a future captain.
"To have gone past 13,000 Test runs is a remarkable achievement, and he is still going strong. When I saw him for the first time in Nagpur in 2012 during his debut Test, I told my teammates that they were watching the future captain of England. What impressed me most was the way he was able to assess the wicket and how he rotated the strike. I knew at that very moment that he would be a big player," Sachin wrote.
