Sachin Tendulkar's tale of missing centuries

GWALIOR: If only Sachin Tendulkar had listened to his son, he may have a century of centuries in international cricket now.
    
When the master batsman fell for 97 in the fourth cricket one-dayer against Pakistan here, it was the 23rd time in Tests and ODIs that he has got out in the 90s.
    
In ODIs, he has got out in the 90s as many as 16 times and in Tests seven times.
    
He has 78 centuries to his credit -- 41 in ODIs and 37 in Tests, and the 23 missed ones would have taken his tally to 101. Unbelievably, he has fallen in the 90s seven times this year.
    
Asked about these surprise failures, Tendulkar laughingly disclosed a solution offered by his son. " My son told me why don't you hit a six when on 94".
    
"Well, these things happen. What is most satisfying for me is that we won both the match and the series" he said after India clinched a ODI series triumph over Pakistan on home soil after 24 years by winning the fourth one-dayer by six wickets.
    
"I guess I got into this wrong habit of getting out in the 90's. But for me, what matters and counts most is that India won," he said.
    
The 42nd century is turning out to be jinxed for Tendulkar who has fallen in the 'nervous 90s' for six times this year (19 matches), and second time in the ongoing series. He fell short by just one run on three occasions.
    
Incidentally, it was Umar Gul again who denied him a century in Mohali, removing him for 99 in the second match there.
    
Tendulkar faced a similar problem at the start of his one-day career and it took him 79 matches to score his first century that came almost after five years since the start of his career. But once he scored his first ton - against Australia in Sri Lanka at Colombo in the Singer World series -- he scored centuries at will.
    
But of late, the century has eluded him, and the last time he crossed the three-figure mark was against the West Indies in January this year at Vadodara.