Sachin Tendulkar's weakness against the short ball - was it exploited enough?

[stevewittry]

It's a known fact that Tendulkar had a known weakness with the fast short pitched ball aimed at his body. He was never a good hooker/ puller of the short pitched fast ball and at times had difficulty ducking underneath it.

I read that this was first exploited by Waqar in his debut series back in 1989-90 when he
struck Tendulkar on his nose with a fast rising ball. The same series I believe Akram hit him on the helmet with another fast one.

He was so much intimated by these short pitched bowling that he had a forgetful debut series.

Apparently Glen McGrath got him out with a fast short of good length delivery which Tendulkar failed to judge and ducked awkwardly and was adjudged lbw.

Zimbabwean Henry Olanga once humiliated him with a fast short one which had Sachin fending awkwardly only to be caught by a close in fieldsman.

Shoaib Akhtar during India's return tour to Pakistan back in 2006 hit him on the helmet a few times through his lightning thunderbolts. Shoaib later revealed in his biography about Sachin's weakness with the fast deliveries for which he had to face severe backlash from the Indian fans.

Abdul Razzaq during his earlier days when he was a quick bowler had Sachin in trouble and dismissed him with fast deliveries.

Between all these I haven't seen anyone specifically targeting him with fast hostile bouncers and this helped him score prolifically since he was not bothered about getting hit. May be the bouncer rule those days did not allow bowlers to ball beyond one bouncer.

My question to this forum is whether Sachin was tested enough with these short pitched bowling though his weakness with short pitched bowling was known.

 

[Slog]

It wasn't as big of a weakness as you make out. Relatively speaking it was a weakness but compared to everyone else I wouldn't classify it as such

Also 70% of the matches he played weren't conducive to that sort of bowing

 

[kukkad kamaal]

Sachin got lucky

 

[Hasan123]

I don't think it was big as your making out. He played for nearly 20 years and wasn't consistently exposed by it.

 

[Slog]

This thread is clearly an attempt to get some praises for Savhin btw

 

[Zak_Fan]

BCCI ensured that nothing like this happened.

 

[stevewittry]

It wasn't as big of a weakness as you make out. Relatively speaking it was a weakness but compared to everyone else I wouldn't classify it as such

Also 70% of the matches he played weren't conducive to that sort of bowing

Of all teams, apparently Pakistan was the only one who had the bowlers and the method to test him relentlessly with this type of bowling.

 

[czar]

Agree, Lucky fellow managed to score over 30 thousand International runs over a period of 20+ years with a weakness that wasn't exploited enough.

Thank God, India Pakistan didn't play much Cricket during the Mid 90s otherwise Pakistani fast bowlers could have ended his Career right away.

 

[Chrish]

Ganguly was ruthlessly targeted with short-pitch tactics by the Aussies it worked quite well. It's reflective in his average against them.

 

[TahirFan]

Kenya

The Kenyans bowled some good short stuff at Tendulkar and the other Indian greats in Port Elizabeth in South Africa

Tendulkar faced 20 balls and only managed to 3 edged singles before his nightmare ended with Angara setting up with a short ball and than bowling him with a Yorker

Kenya went on winning the game on a lively pitch which rendered the Indians as clueless

http://www.espncricinfo.com/ci/engine/current/match/66103.html

 

[Big Mac]

Kenya

The Kenyans bowled some good short stuff at Tendulkar and the other Indian greats in Port Elizabeth in South Africa

Tendulkar faced 20 balls and only managed to 3 edged singles before his nightmare ended with Angara setting up with a short ball and than bowling him with a Yorker

Kenya went on winning the game on a lively pitch which rendered the Indians as clueless

http://www.espncricinfo.com/ci/engine/current/match/66103.html

Now we know why Kenya never gained test status, BCCI destroyed Kenyan cricket as revenge for humiliating Sachin

 

[Bilal7]

He was basically a rich man's Raina. Overrated.

 

[captain crook]

He was basically a rich man's Raina. Overrated.

Haha.. I can see how some people must be burning at this statement

 

[Buffet]

Ganguly was ruthlessly targeted with short-pitch tactics by the Aussies it worked quite well. It's reflective in his average against them.

There were gun bowlers in some other teams as well, but I think Aus was using technologies a bit more. Later other teams picked on it as well. SA was pretty big in tech in some period when majority of teams were not that big in that aspect. Now, I guess everyone is using it all the time.

 

[Poutine]

Some people are missing the point of this thread. The point is to say how he had no weakness and was the best batsman ever.

 

[Junaids]

I don't think Tendulkar had a technical weakness at all. He was a briiliant technician.

His problem was just between his ears: he didn't have the guts to save Tests in the fourth innings, and he didn't have the intelligence to improve after the age of about 22.

He was an ATG, and his only weakness was inside his head.

 

[shaz619]

I don't think Tendulkar had a technical weakness at all. He was a briiliant technician.

His problem was just between his ears: he didn't have the guts to save Tests in the fourth innings, and he didn't have the intelligence to improve after the age of about 22.

He was an ATG, and his only weakness was inside his head.

Overall Junaids how does Younis Khan compare to Sachin? who would you pick to bat for your life!

 

[Junaids]

Overall Junaids how does Younis Khan compare to Sachin? who would you pick to bat for your life!

In the first three innings of a Test or in an ODI I would pick Sachin every time!

But to bat for my life in the fourth innings of a Test? Definitely Younis!

 

[Tusker]

I don't think Tendulkar had a technical weakness at all. He was a briiliant technician.

His problem was just between his ears: he didn't have the guts to save Tests in the fourth innings, and he didn't have the intelligence to improve after the age of about 22.

He was an ATG, and his only weakness was inside his head.

Keeping the past in mind this is how this thread will unfold ...

I will produce video clips to disprove your opinions and you will quietly move away from here ... Right ?

Trolling much ?

 

[Junaids]

Keeping the past in mind this is how this thread will unfold ...

I will produce video clips to disprove your opinions and you will quietly move away from here ... Right ?

Trolling much ?

I am genuinely baffled by this comment.

I wrote that Tendulkar was an ATG with a flawless technique, and I disputed his alleged weakness against the short ball.

And I wrote that the only think which stopped him from having an even better record and an even higher place in cricket's Pantheon was that he wasn't as smart or as strong in a crisis as the very best batsmen.

Why is this viewed as trolling? It's a fact of life that both Kallis and Sangakkara also scored over 12,000 Test runs, but at much better averages even though one kept wicket and the other took 297 wickets bowling fast.

There has to be a reason for why Tendulkar - who played his own Home matches in more batting-friendly conditions - now has to spend eternity looking up at their superior records.

And so I explained it. In a way which in no way criticized his technique.

 

[Chief Destroyer]

Definitely was a weakness of his. There was the mental fear of taking on quick bowlers but the main reasons were his guard and stance. He was never in line to pull the ball because of his first stump guard and his torso never opened up which is necessary to pull the ball. But this made him very proficient square on the offside and helped him invent those unique uppercuts.

 

[Tusker]

I am genuinely baffled by this comment.

I wrote that Tendulkar was an ATG with a flawless technique, and I disputed his alleged weakness against the short ball.

And I wrote that the only think which stopped him from having an even better record and an even higher place in cricket's Pantheon was that he wasn't as smart or as strong in a crisis as the very best batsmen.

Why is this viewed as trolling? It's a fact of life that both Kallis and Sangakkara also scored over 12,000 Test runs, but at much better averages even though one kept wicket and the other took 297 wickets bowling fast.

There has to be a reason for why Tendulkar - who played his own Home matches in more batting-friendly conditions - now has to spend eternity looking up at their superior records.

And so I explained it. In a way which in no way criticized his technique.

because in the past you have expressed these same views on more than one occasion and I have refuted these views that you have ( Intelligence and 4th inngs / crisis situations) and then there be silence ... hence why I feel that you are trolling (Nothing wrong with it and doesnt bother me )

 

[Chrish]

There were gun bowlers in some other teams as well, but I think Aus was using technologies a bit more. Later other teams picked on it as well. SA was pretty big in tech in some period when majority of teams were not that big in that aspect. Now, I guess everyone is using it all the time.

Aussie coach Buccanan made a statement once that Tendulkar is susceptible to short-pitch bowling.. Not really sure if that was a genuine comment or traditional Aussie ploy to get under opposition's skin. Funnily enough, they never used the tactic against SRT or VVS from memory.. Possibly because they didn't see any return.

Ganguly on the other hand, they went after him like there is no tomorrow.

 

[sshakir411]

Sachin was far from the best puller in the game but he was the absolute BEST in judging the short ball and letting it go by. He either swayed or ducked...ducking got him in to some trouble on the flat pitches of Pakistan (where he got hit on the head, arm, etc) but he never threw his wicket under a short ball barrage, specially in test cricket. In ODIs he developed the upper cut and the hook that prevented him from being tied down but he could get out if the short ball was right at his throat or face. Him being a relatively short man didn't help but he had a great eye and quick hands and feet to compensate. You don't become the highest run scorer in cricket with a big weakness because it would get exploited very early.

 

[Hitman]

Such a shame the bowlers around the world never knew of it or else they would ave exploited him till no end. Why did they allow him to score 100 International centuries, become the highest scorer in Tests and ODI's, become the highest century scorer in both Tests and ODI's, and score more tan 33,000 runs in International cricket.

 

[AlizeeFan]

 

[AlizeeFan]

 

[Hitman]

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