August 1990, Old Trafford, Manchester – 2nd Test match, India v/s England
Sachin 119* (189b, 17*4s)
The
performance of majority of Indian batsmen outside the subcontinent has been abysmal
to say the least. Reasons have always been very clear; we don’t have pitches with
bounce & pace and neither do we have green tops which assist quality swing
bowling at home. So when we go abroad, the unfamiliar conditions get the better
of our batsmen. Most of the times such conditions require quick adaptation, but
not on the cost of the natural game of an individual. Majority of our batters use
to go ultra-defensive to an extent where they do not even score off the bad balls.
Missing out on such scoring opportunities boost the morale of the opposition
bowlers. So it is very important to play the natural game without being too
ambitious; Something Sachin used to do with perfection.
In 1990,
India went to England for a 3 Test match series. Indians were given a rude awakening
in the very first test when Gharam Gooch battered the team into submission.
Sachin could not do much in either of the innings and failed to negate the
sharp swing. After the test he was a little perturbed and went to seek the advice
of Sunil Gavaskar. Gavaskar asked Sachin to play the ball a little late; playing
late in such conditions usually allowed the batsman to judge the swing better.
Gavaskar also suggested the young man to play his natural game and to go hard
on the bad balls. Sachin sapped into the nuggets of wisdom that was given to
him.
Indian team
turned up against the English in the 2nd Test at Old Trafford,
Manchester. England batted first and piled up a huge score of 519. India’s
reply was strong and we compiled 432 runs. Azhar scored a classy century and
Sachin supported him well with a well measured 68. Some attacking batting by the
English helped them to set a target of 408 run for the Indians on the last day.
Indian victory was ruled out of the equation even before the fourth innings commenced.
Most of the top order batsmen opted to play an ultra-defensive game and unsurprisingly
it did not pay-off. Indians lost wickets in a hurry and were reduced to 109 for
4. Sachin walked in to bat at number 6 with the herculean task to saving the
match for India.
The England
skipper Gooch set an attacking field for Sachin but he started positively; a
cover-drive off the front foot to an over-pitched delivery went crashing into
the boundary. Eddie Hemmings, the English off-spinner was on fire. He accounted
for Azahar with a well tossed up delivery and almost sent Sachin packing; but
he dropped a ‘Dolly’ off his own bowling and Sachin got away with a loose shot.
He made English pay for it and shared a crucial 56 runs partnership with Kapil
Dev. Manoj Prabhakar joined Sachin in the middle after a moment of ‘brain-freeze’
that led to the downfall of Kapil Dev. India was at tatters with the scoreboard
reading 183 for 6.
Sachin
started the repair job with Prabhakar. He glanced Chris Lewis for a four
through the vacant fine-leg. Gooch wanted to win the match and that became
evident when he deployed four slips and a gully. Sachin responded with intent;
a short pitch ball on off-stump was precisely guided between the fourth slip
and the gully for a four. Sachin completed his half-century with another
boundary through covers. It took 100 balls to reach the milestone and he stoked
the ball though the fence 7 times in the process. Sachin showcased an array of
back-foot drives with amazing panache. Most of these shots came of short pitch
deliveries outside the off-stump. It’s a common knowledge that Indians do not
like short stuff and hence they kept on testing Sachin with the particular
line. Sachin dealt with it with awe-inspiring ease but the English persisted
with the line. Sachin slashed another such delivery from Angus Fraser and it
flew over the slips for a four. He was in complete control of the situation and
Prabhakar was giving him all the support that he needed. This pair had put
India in a position from where saving the match looked a realistic possibility.
With just 11
overs left in the match, Gooch pulled out all stops and put in a fielder at
short mid-off to unnerve Sachin. But unfazed by the tactic, he played a
wonderful back-foot straight drive for another boundary. He was inches away
from his first test century now. A few balls later, following the order of the
day, he drove another one towards the long-off fence; this time of the
front-foot. He ran three and a well-deserved century for Sachin was complete. No
wild celebration or violent outburst of emotions followed the special achievement.
He pulled off the helmet and acknowledged the applause of the team mates and
spectators. 17 years and 107 day!! That was his age when he made history; the
second youngest to score a test hundred. “It is an innings of temperament,
skill and delightful stroke-play” announced Richie Benaud on the television.
But Sachin knew that the job was not done. He composed himself and went back
into his zone of focus. He played a back-foot cover drive and a square cut in
the next few balls; both made a mess of the commercial boards near the ropes.
England had
enough by now and decided to call the match off. India had saved the match with
the help of an unbroken partnership of 160 runs for the seventh wicket. Sachin
ended up with an unbeaten 119 off 189 balls. This knock was studded with 17 crisp
shots to the fence. But the best part was the maturity shown by the 17 years
old ‘Little Master’. He was adjudged the Man of the Match for his magnificent
batting performance in both the innings.
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