Sachin Tendulkar is not Don Bradman: Graeme Pollock

Graeme Pollock, one of the greats of world cricket, says Virender Sehwag is the most exciting cricketer of the current era but refuses to compare Sachin Tendulkar with the Australian legend.

Have you been following cricket lately?
I have been. I watch the Ashes and then switch on to the Centurion action. I am hoping for some nice cricket from the India-South Africa series irrespective of what happened on the first Day.

How has the game changed from the time you played?
The main change is the Twenty-over cricket. I’m not a great follower of T20 but I can understand that it is entertainment. The public, television and even the players seem to be enjoying this format. There is a lot of money to be made too. So, it is a win-win situation for all.

Would you have liked to play the game if you were to belong to the current era?
Anybody has to play. You need to adapt to the requirements. I played one-day cricket in 1969 and in fact I had the highest one-day score for about 20 years. In a 55-over game, I was 222 not out. I used to score quickly — be it in Test or in the limited-over games. I don’t think there is too much difference in T20. A couple of years ago, T20 looked like a game for the sloggers. Now, every top batsman is able to play normal cricket and still be effective.

What about India’s chances in this tour?
I think they have a chance irrespective of what happened on Day One. It is probably the best balanced-side they have put together — their top six are as good as any, with Dhoni at No 7 and Harbhajan at No 8. It should be a good series. What has happened is that India have started playing better and better away from home. Previously they were good only at home.

Sachin Tendulkar is on the verge of 50th Test century. How big is that achievement?
I had a short meeting with him when John Wright was your coach. I found him to be a gentleman.

He has probably gone on two or three years more than most people anticipated. He is now as successful as five-eight years ago. He should keep going. Fifty  centuries will be an incredible effort. I think it is bigger than any bowling peak. I feel 50 centuries is bigger than the 800 and 700 wickets of Muttiah Muralitharan and Shane Warne.

People have started calling him modern Bradman.
You may say that but the point is Bradman was 40 runs more than the next best player when he was playing. I don’t think anybody is that much better than other players.

You have Tendulkar, Kallis, Ponting, Lara… all these guys are averaging in late 50s. In contrast, Bradman was 99 and Wally Hammond was 58. You can’t compare a difference of 40 per innings with any other effort. Over the years, you can’t say who is better — Tendulkar, Lara,
Kallis or Ponting.

The yardstick now is Bradman was 40 per innings better than others at the same time, on the same wicket. I still think Bradman is way ahead of anybody who ever played.

Any other cricketer who has caught your eye?
Virender Sehwag. He is the most exciting cricketer in the world today. He is the most dangerous and dynamic player at the moment. He can change the game in a two-hour session. That’s what India need in the Test.

Any particular bowler…
No one in particular. Dale Steyn is good but he has a long way to go.

Your top five batsman?
Gary Sobers in the 60s, I and Barry Richards in the 70s, Viv Richards in the 80s and then Lara and Tendulkar. These are the best batsmen I’ve seen.

And bowlers…
Dennis Lillee, Malcolm Marshall, Warne, Murali and guys like Richard Hadlee will come somewhere in between. Shaun Pollock will go as a good all-rounder but statistics will prove that Kallis will go down as the greatest all-rounders of all time.