Sachin Tendulkar Used To Toy With Shane Warne At Times: Brett Lee

Sachin Tendulkar vs Shane Warne. Tell me what is the first thing that comes to your mind when you hear or see the names of these two all-time great cricketers in a single statement? Chennai 1998? Sydney 1992? Sandstorm 1998? Sharjah? Melbourne 1999? Mumbai 2001? All of them?

Cricket, just like any other sport, is all about rivalries, whether it is between two great sides or between two champion cricketers, who wanna test themselves against the best and possibly come out on top. Sachin v Warne was the ultimate rivalry of the 1990s and the build-up to every series between India and Australia used to be centered around these two legends.

The former Australian leg-spinner bamboozled batsmen around the world throughout his career barring Sachin Tendulkar. And, one of the prime reasons for it was the Master Blasters’ ability to read the bowler out of his hand, reckons Brett Lee.

“The way Sachin used to read bowlers out of their hand, the different technique he used to play different balls was pure class. There were times when Warne would try and get the trajectory a bit different through the air and sometimes, he would try and get a few balls to drop,” Lee said during Star Sports show ‘Cricket Connected’

He added: “Every time he would try the subtle variations, there was only Sachin who would pick them up. Warne would bamboozle other batsmen around the world, but Sachin would watch the hand much better than most of the other batsmen. Warne hated it, he would come back and say that he tried everything to get Sachin out, but he couldn’t,”

Also Read: Brett Lee Reveals That He Was Advised To Not Sledge Sachin Tendulkar Early-On In His Career By Glenn McGrath

Brett Lee on what made Sachin Tendulkar so good against Shane Warne

Sachin used to absolute toy with the champion leg-spinner. He would advance down the track to force the leg-spinner to bowl short at him, and the moment Warne dished it short, he would hang on this backfoot and smash him on the on-side, reckoned the former fast bowler.

“He used to advance down the wicket a few times and invited Warne to bowl a fraction too short. Sometimes, he would wait patiently on the back foot and play those beautiful shots. It was almost like he was playing cat and mouse with Warne and not many batsmen can play cat and mouse with Shane Warne because he’s so talented. But on days, Sachin Tendulkar was toying with Warne and that does not happen often,” the former Australian fast bowler added.

Sachin Tendulkar, during his 24-year-old career, dominated a plethora of bowlers before finally hanging up his boots after having racked up a barely believable 100 international hundreds.

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