Are Tendulkar and Ponting done? Is it time to call it a day?

[Howe_zat]

3 ATG batsmen?

Anyway, as others have said, this should only ever be a selector's call. Unfortunately, it isn't, at least not for Tendulkar. Whether he likes it or not he now has the responsibility to time his departure properly. I suppose that's the price you end up paying for having his kind of job security.

[harsh.skm]

3 ATG batsmen?

Anyway, as others have said, this should only ever be a selector's call. Unfortunately, it isn't, at least not for Tendulkar. Whether he likes it or not he now has the responsibility to time his departure properly. I suppose that's the price you end up paying for having his kind of job security.

I think you meant for having built up his kind of job security.

[Howe_zat]

Never said he didn't deserve it, but yeah, sure.

[grecian]

It already has affected his legacy. Not too long ago he was seen as the best Aussie batsman since Bradman and the equal if not better (briefly) than Lara and Tendulkar. He was averaging over 60.
Hopefully like with Viv after his career is over we will remember the dominant years.

Ahh but they don't, in 15 years time they will be stat-botting, about how is average is poor compared to the new phenom, it's what us Viv fans have had to put up with for years.

[Satyanash89]

Ahh but they don't, in 15 years time they will be stat-botting, about how is average is poor compared to the new phenom, it's what us Viv fans have had to put up with for years.

yea, this.

But even when you pick apart their stats Sachin and Ponting are astounding... Sachin averages atleast 40 against every country in every country which is quite amazing if you think about it... he's delivered in all kinds of conditions consistently.
Ponting is similar except for his India record... hope he has an awesome series here to rectify that, if he survives that long. So im pretty sure Sachin and Ponting will be recognized as two of the best of the generation, and all time, even by stats-*****s

Really is a quite sad time for our generation of cricket fans to see such long time mainstays declining quite rapidly... Dravid, VVS, Sachin, Ponting, Strauss... theyll be desperately missed

Still never know with such guys though... Sachin turned it around in astounding fashion after everyone wrote him off in 2006. Who's to say they cant pull out one last hurrah?

[silentstriker]

I think you meant for having built up his kind of job security.

Meh. There shouldn't be such a thing in sport. There is clearly, especially with Tendulkar, but sentiment should not play a role. The moment you feel someone else can help you win a Test match more than him, he should be dropped immediately. The only goal the selectors should have is to win the next test match.

[Satyanash89]

Meh. There shouldn't be such a thing in sport. There is clearly, especially with Tendulkar, but sentiment should not play a role. The moment you feel someone else can help you win a Test match more than him, he should be dropped immediately. The only goal the selectors should have is to win the next test match.

If the BCCI axes Tendulkar unceremoniously, the whole nation will erupt at the "injustice", especially Maharshtra, his home state, where i live... and seeing as how Srikkanth is the chief of selectors, I would not be surprised at all if some groups try to 'target' South Indians... so i for one hope he doesnt get the axe

Seriously though, its easy for us to sit here and say he should be dropped for the betterment of the team, but no one has the balls to do so....

[grecian]

I think SS realises this is an Utopian point, he's mentioned it before Tendulkar won't be dropped.

Dravid retired, and it's worked well. Yet with Yuvrav still in the side, sachin shouldn't consider it, unless he feels fatigued.

I really feel he has to retire at the end of his career though, him being dropped will cause madness. Replacements will be hated, selectors will be despised.

[harsh.skm]

I think SS realises this is an Utopian point, he's mentioned it before Tendulkar won't be dropped.

Dravid retired, and it's worked well. Yet with Yuvrav still in the side, sachin shouldn't consider it, unless he feels fatigued.

I really feel he has to retire at the end of his career though, him being dropped will cause madness. Replacements will be hated, selectors will be despised.

Dead on. Imagine somebody like Rahane replacing Tendulkar. He would probably be booed every delivery in his first innings. When thinking about a long-term replacement, the only one who I think will make me happy would be a more mature Unmukth Chand, hopefully in a year. Lad can be special, like Pujara and Kohli. The rest of the cast: Rahane, Raina, Badri, Rohit Sharma, Yuvraj, Tiwary do not really seem the part, but we may have to do. Though I should probably reserve judgement on Badri.

Another way to go would be to play Sehwag at #4, as he has wanted to play at that position for so long now, and get somebody else to open. Sehwag replacing Sachin may cushion the blow.

[grecian]

Dead on. Imagine somebody like Rahane replacing Tendulkar. He would probably be booed every delivery in his first innings. When thinking about a long-term replacement, the only one who I think will make me happy would be a more mature Unmukth Chand, hopefully in a year. Lad can be special, like Pujara and Kohli. The rest of the cast: Rahane, Raina, Badri, Rohit Sharma, Yuvraj, Tiwary do not really seem the part, but we may have to do. Though I should probably reserve judgement on Badri.

Another way to go would be to play Sehwag at #4, as he has wanted to play at that position for so long now, and get somebody else to open. Sehwag replacing Sachin may cushion the blow.

Chand looks good. It's a problem with yuvrav isn't it? I've had close relations who have survived and not from cancer. It's incredible he's worked his fitness to be back in the side, have tons of admiration for the guy, but he isn't a Test player, and he's probably just muddying the waters.

[Cevno]

There is if they're keeping out good young players, but actually in sides with Quiney and Yuvrav in the teams anyway, I'm not sure that's the case ATM.

Who in India can step up right now? They'll probably pick Raina again.

Same was said with respect to Dravid and Laxman. Raina and Yuvraj were alternating for the 6th spot even then undeservingly....

And now that both Dravid and Laxman have been replaced by reasonably good upcoming batsmen, Raina and Yuvraj are still in the team when the likes of Rahane, Badri and even Mukund/Rohit Sharma should be ahead of them like before Pujara/Kohli should have been.


I am not sure Sachin should retire yet, but don't buy this argument tbh.

[Cevno]

If the BCCI axes Tendulkar unceremoniously, the whole nation will erupt at the "injustice", especially Maharshtra, his home state, where i live... and seeing as how Srikkanth is the chief of selectors, I would not be surprised at all if some groups try to 'target' South Indians... so i for one hope he doesnt get the axe

Seriously though, its easy for us to sit here and say he should be dropped for the betterment of the team, but no one has the balls to do so....

Dead on. Imagine somebody like Rahane replacing Tendulkar. He would probably be booed every delivery in his first innings. When thinking about a long-term replacement, the only one who I think will make me happy would be a more mature Unmukth Chand, hopefully in a year. Lad can be special, like Pujara and Kohli. The rest of the cast: Rahane, Raina, Badri, Rohit Sharma, Yuvraj, Tiwary do not really seem the part, but we may have to do. Though I should probably reserve judgement on Badri.

Another way to go would be to play Sehwag at #4, as he has wanted to play at that position for so long now, and get somebody else to open. Sehwag replacing Sachin may cushion the blow.

Let's calm down and not go into hyperbole.

Don't think selectors will have the guts to drop him, like they didn't with Dravid/Laxman but even if they do there will be some outrage, but not this nonsense.

And btw, Sandeep Patil, a maharashtrian is Chief of selectors now.

[robelinda]

Plenty of young indian domestic guns to get a game when Sachin goes, but i get the feeling that Dravid and Laxman felt the pressure a *little* of the Sachin retiring thing, someone had to go, they realised it was never going to be Sachin, so the knives would be out for them. Australia doesnt have the luxury of gun batting talent in the wings, our next best was apparently Quiney, no need to say any more. I guess we are waiting for Hughes to come again, Watson is no Ponting, if we really did drop Ponting my feeling is it would weaken us and no replacement is going to do much better, whether its Bailey or Ferguson or Quiney or whoever. I'd imagine Rahane for India or Badrinath would do a better job than Sachin is doing currently.

[LongHopCassidy]

Ponting will play until he's dropped. He's fairly experienced in the pride-swallowing game as the first Australian captain to play on after being dumped in decades; anyone willing to wear that emasculation wouldn't be inclined to give a **** about retiring gracefully.

If allowed to play on his terms (and grecian's Quiney point nails it) he won't retire till the end of the next Australian summer. My theory is he has a haunting chip on his shoulder re: that little urn.

[Jono]

Meh. There shouldn't be such a thing in sport. There is clearly, especially with Tendulkar, but sentiment should not play a role. The moment you feel someone else can help you win a Test match more than him, he should be dropped immediately. The only goal the selectors should have is to win the next test match.

The problem is you and a whole bunch of other ****s thought he was done in 2006 and if you had your way India would never have won a series in Englan and drawn series in SA since as you would have dropped him.

We are playing Yuvraj Singh. Why is sachin our biggest concern? Because he isn't as good as he was two years ago? So what? He's still better than Yuvraj ****ing Singh