Former India captain, Sunil Gavaskar, slammed the England cricket board (ECB) for having James Anderson’s name ahead of Sachin Tendulkar’s when renaming the Pataudi Trophy, England’s home Test series against India.
Gavaskar, in his column for Mid-Day, was critical of the English board for failing to account for Tendulkar’s career, which is miles ahead of Anderson’s achievements across all aspects. He also suggested that the Indian legend has been superior across multiple formats as well.
The batting great even urged Indian cricket fans to call the ongoing series the Tendulkar-Anderson trophy instead. He did not buy the argument that the series was named in alphabetical order and called it lame altogether.
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The Pataudi Trophy was given to the winner of the Test series in England against India. The tradition began in 2007 when they celebrated the 75-year anniversary of the contest between the two top teams in English soil.
“The ECB (England and Wales Cricket Board) is fully entitled to call the series by any name they choose, but for most, if not all, Indian cricket lovers, it is jarring to know that Anderson’s name comes first. Not only is Sachin Tendulkar, along with Kapil Dev, the greatest Indian cricketer, but also senior to Anderson by more than a dozen years,” Gavaskar wrote.
“He is numero uno as far as runs and centuries are concerned in Test cricket, but also at the one-day level, too, he has more runs than anybody else. Anderson is third in the list of wicket takers in Test cricket, and his record is nowhere as good as Tendulkar’s in one-day cricket,” he added.
Gavaskar even highlighted how Anderson was never part of a team that won a World Cup. Interestingly, Anderson was part of the England squad that won the T20 World Cup in 2010 but never got a game under his belt.
“Jimmy Anderson was a terrific bowler, but mainly in English conditions, and his record away is nowhere near as good as Tendulkar’s is,” he shared.
GAVASKAR CRITICAL OF PATAUDI MEDALLION
Gavaskar had his fair share of questions when the Pataudi medal was announced to pay respect to the royal Pataudi family, who had a lasting impact on the sport within the country.
The ECB announced that the medallion would be given to the series-winning captain. However, Gavaskar questioned what would happen should it end in a draw. Instead, he suggested providing the medallion for the man of the match.
“The announcement of the Tendulkar-Anderson Trophy also said that respect would be given to the Pataudis by having a medallion for the captain of the team winning the series. Why the captain and what if the series is drawn? That’s why it would have been better to have had a Pataudi medal for the Man Of The Match for every Test, culminating in the Pataudi Trophy for the Player Of The Series. This way, the Pataudis will be remembered after every Test match played as well as after the series is finished in England.It would be interesting to hear what Indian cricket lovers feel on this subject,” said Gavaskar.
Meanwhile, England have put in a fantastic batting display to get them close to India’s score and giving the visitors a six-run lead. India ended Day 3 on 90 for two with a lead of 96 runs to his name.
