Sachin Tendulkar's Revelations In His Autobiography: The Other Side Of The Story
MUMBAI: Sachin Tendulkar hardly ever spoke out of turn as long as he played for India. He always measured his words without betraying his emotions. The only time he was rattled and decided to react was when Greg Chappell tried to tinker with his batting order during the 2007 World Cup.
When Tendulkar tried to reason out why he should bat only at the top of the order, his stand was seen by some as selfish and he felt his commitment to Indian cricket was being questioned. On return from the World Cup where India failed to make even the second stage, he lashed out at Chappell and took it up with the Indian cricket board.
There are a number of instances when the board went by what the seniors said and sacked Indian coaches quietly. The seniors even succeeded in keeping some fellow players out, dubbing them as a bad influence on the dressing room. The board accepted their word for it and kept them out of selection for reasons other than cricket.
Chappell in an interview a couple of years later was in a mellowed mood and regretted his decision to force Tendulkar to bat lower down. He said if confronted with a similar situation again, he would still put across the suggestion; however, if Tendulkar showed any discomfort, he would not push like he did in the Caribbean.
So, Tendulkar's narrative has to been seen in the backdrop of what happened before the disastrous World Cup. Chappell has picked on a technical detail when he suggested to Tendulkar that he should replace Rahul Dravid as captain, by saying the only time he visited the master blaster's residence was 12 months before the World Cup and not "just months away".
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