English cricketer Joe Root is being extensively talked about for his blazing form, which triggers comparisons with Sachin Tendulkar.
Some people, like Michael Vaughan, have taken things a bit too far by insinuating that it would be great for Test cricket if Root surpassed Tendulkar.
Former Indian captain Sunil Gavaskar, however, could no longer handle the disrespect and responded.
Last week on the Club Prairie Fire podcast, Vaughan said BCCI would never want an England player leading the list over an Indian.
“If Joe goes past Sachin, it will be the best thing that ever happens to cricket, because there’s no way BCCI would want an England player at the top of the list,” Vaughan said. “They’ll want an Indian at the top so that will secure Test match cricket because it’ll take forever for someone to get past him.”
In retaliation perhaps, Gavaskar has brought the ‘business of India bashing’ to the fore and questioned the motives behind statements of people like Vaughan.
One would say that Gavaskar’s piece in Sportstar reads “India bashing is business which must be countered with aggression; it’s their only language”
For instance, I heard recently that it would do well for test cricket if Joe Root were to overtake Sachin Tendulkar in terms of most runs and centuries scored in test matches. Can you tell me what is wrong with the currently existing Test Cricket where Tendulkar holds the record? How would it improve if (a big if) some Englishman were to take over the same record? How would it be better? To enlighten us please.
Having amassed 12,402 runs, Root is now in the sixth position in the list of all-time runs and tied with other four players for centuries (34) on this count while the current cricketers are behind him as he tries to break Tendulkar’s records (15,426 & 51).
Root may well outdo India’s batsman eventually yet he requires a lot of effort before reaching there.
