Would Sachin Tendulkar score a ton without spectators? VVS Laxman gives fitting reply
IPL 2020: VVS Laxman was Sachin Tendulkar’s teammate when he scored his famous twin centuries against Australia in Sharjah in 1998. The batting coach of Sunrisers Hyderabad explains what would have happened had Tendulkar had no crowds in those matches.
The sporting world has adapted to the new normal. Due to the restrictions laid down by the Covid-19 pandemic, sports all over the world is now being played without spectators in the stadium. Even the ongoing season of the Indian Premier League is played behind closed doors in the UAE.
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While adapting to the new conditions, restrictions and rules are a difficult set of challenge for all sportspersons, with the idea of playing without fans posing a new layer of difficulty. Sportspersons often enjoy the support they receive from the crowds and feed on the excitement it brings.
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But would cricketing legends such as Sachin Tendulkar be able to perform without crowds? In a recent interview, former India cricketer and current Sunrisers Hyderabad batting coach VVS Laxman was asked if his former Indian teammate could have scored his famous twin-hundreds in Sharjah in 1998 if there were no crowds. Laxman gave an interesting response.
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“For Sachin, it didn’t matter the way he used to bat for India and Mumbai. He was passionate about what he was doing,” Laxman told The Indian Express. “I don’t have any doubt that Sachin would still have been in his zone. All great players derive that internal motivation and not necessarily be motivated externally.
“Sachin was the greatest batsman I have seen in our generation. He still would have won that game for us.”
Laxman was in the Playing XI when India played Australia in the 1998 Coca-Cola Cup in Sharjah. He got the chance to bat with Tendulkar during both the matches in which the former India batsman scored masterful centuries against the Australians, taking India to a victory in the final.
