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Sachin gets candid about comparisons with Virat, Prithvi's prospects in Australia

Kohli, fastest to 10,000 ODI runs recently, obliterating Tendulkar by 54 innings, is 13 shy of levelling the legendary Mumbaikar’s record haul of 51 ODI hundreds.

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“Tendulkar has carried the burden of the nation for 21 years. It is time we carried him on our shoulders.”

These were the famous quotes of Virat Kohli on the night of April 2, 2011 after India lifted the ICC Cricket World Cup for the second time in 28 years.

Ever since that night, and as Tendulkar went into retirement in November 2013, Kohli has carried the burden of the nation on his shoulders. Kohli’s run-making abilities across all formats has made him the undisputed No. 1 batsman in Tests and ODIs, so much so that comparisons between the master and the pupil are unavoidable.

Kohli, fastest to 10,000 ODI runs recently, obliterating Tendulkar by 54 innings, is 13 shy of levelling the legendary Mumbaikar’s record haul of 51 ODI hundreds. And, at 29, he has 62 international hundreds, 38 short of Tendulkar’s century of centuries.

There is mutual admiration between the two. Tendulkar, on Thursday, spoke about Kohli’s development as a cricketer. “He has developed immensely. I always saw that spark in him. I always felt that he was going to be one of the leading players in the world, not just of his generation, but one of the leading players of all time,” Tendulkar said on the sidelines of the opening day of the four-day Tendulkar Middlesex Global Academy at the world-class DY Patil Stadium in Navi Mumbai.

Tendulkar begged to avoid comparisons between himself and Kohli. The 45-year-old said: “Like how Virat has said and I have been saying for 24 years that I have played, I have never believed in comparisons. If you take from the time cricket was played from day one to now, the change has been constant. Each generation played differently, there were different rules, there were different restrictions, there were different surfaces, there were different balls also at times. A lot of things. The boundary lines have changed. I have played where the ball had to hit the concrete in Australia. Things have changed over the years. There were different bowlers who played in 1960s, 70s, 80s, and possibly in my time and what they are playing today. I personally don't feel one should be comparing different generations.”

 

'Prithvi will get better and better'

If Kohli acted as the connecting link between Tendulkar’s generation and today’s, the current Indian skipper is encouraging the GenNext cricketers with the arrival of the 18-year-old Prithvi Shaw in the international stage. Having already scored a century on Test debut and amassed another 100 runs in the combined two innings in the next, Shaw has impressed everyone.

While Shaw has rightfully earned selection for the upcoming tour of Australia, many felt that the youngster should have been selected for ODIs against the West Indies for his dashing strokeplay and fearless cricket.

Tendulkar reserved his opinion on Shaw. Asked if he would have loved to see Shaw play in the ODIs, the batting legend said: “I have never given my opinions on selection, who should be picked and who should be dropped. I would like to maintain it that way because that is like influencing the selectors to do something. I don’t want to to get into that.

“But if I have to look at Prithvi as a player, he's progressed tremendously. I feel with the age, he is only going to get better and better. Prithvi is someone who will continue to perform well. Yes, the Australian trip is going to be a good exposure to him. And whatever I have seen, he is a fast learner. So I see him ready for that. I think he has performed well in all formats. So if you are not suited for all formats, you can't perform well.”

Another next-generation player who is making his mark in the international stage is left-arm pacer Khaleel Ahmed, the 2016 ICC U-19 World Cup team member. The 20-year-old seems to have answered Team India’s search for a left-arm pacer, having taken 11 wickets in 6 ODIs – almost all his scalps have been top-order batsmen. Ahmed has not gone wicketless in his ODIs so far.

Tendulkar said about Ahmed: “Khaleel has been good, I have not watched too much of him. He was part of the Mumbai Indians also, so I have seen a bit of Khaleel sometime ago. Whatever recently I saw him on television, he looked good.”

Tendulkar was guarded when asked if the search for a left-arm pacer has ended with Ahmed. “It is too early to say that. It is a funny game. The moment you think you are in a comfortable position, that’s the beginning of your downfall. Bench strength becomes important and that is a critical factor for any side whether you are playing at home or away from home, more so away from home because the conditions are different, practice facilities come into play. You have your own people around all the time (at home), you are not going to get that comfort (when you are touring). Your bench strength or the team that travels becomes a family away from family. That becomes a critical factor.”

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