Date:30/07/2007 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2007/07/30/stories/2007073060022100.htm

Sport

Sachin is the best: Donald

— PHOTO: AFP

Donald.

Nottingham: Allan Donald hailed Sachin Tendulkar as the best batsman of his era, adding the 34-year-old Indian deserved to break Brian Lara’s record and become Test cricket’s highest run-getter.

Tendulkar, on Saturday, became the third batsman to cross 11,000 Test runs, passing the landmark in his 223rd innings, 36 fewer innings than second-placed Allan Border, but ten more than Lara.

“In my era, I think he’s the best player I’ve ever had the pleasure of playing against,” said Donald, currently England’s bowling consultant.

Phenomenal

“He’s something special, very freakish, and I think that what he’s done for the game and his country has been absolutely phenomenal.”

Donald suggested that Tendulkar had looked his “old self”, and that he had a lot of cricket left in him.

“He’s a credit to cricket and today (on Saturday) he looked quite his old self out there apart from being ‘grilled’ (hit on the helmet) by Jimmy Anderson. There are not many times you see him getting grilled. He is definitely the best batsman I have ever seen,” said Donald.

“There is a lot more cricket in Tendulkar. He still looks so boyish. It’s is a bit scary to notice how many hundreds he has notched up in Test cricket and not to mention those one-day hundreds.

“He’s just a credit to cricket. I hope there is still a lot more cricket in Sachin because it’s unbelievable how many years he’s stuck it out and achieved what he has. I hope he goes past Lara’s record — he deserves it.” — Special Correspondent