Australian spin legend Shane Warne on Tuesday said Sachin Tendulkar is the best batsman he has ever bowled to but he is not scared of the Indian master batsman.
Warne clarified that his statement that he had nightmares about Tendulkar after the Sharjah One-day series was a joke and it wasn't meant to be taken so seriously.
"I want to clarify that this nightmare thing was a joke. Sachin is the best batsman of my time and I always enjoy the challenge of bowling to him but I am not scared of him or anybody for that matter," said Warne on the sidelines of the launch of Advanced Hair Studio in Delhi.
"If I would have been scared I wouldn't have taken so many wickets in my career. I had quite a hair-raising experiences when he smashed me all over the park but I also got him out many times," added Warne, who took 708 wickets in Tests and 293 in ODIs. Warne also disagreed with sport Minister M S Gill, who had said that BCCI is changing the rules of the game and IPL is fundamentally a business.
"I disagree with him (Gill). It is not only about money. If you see the current bunch of Indian players, we have Suresh Raina working with Darren Lehman in the Chennai Super Kings team, also there is Rohit Sharma. These players are evolving into match-winners after IPL stints.
"Even someone like Ravinder Jadeja bats at number 9 for India in Tests and also can play in number four when situation demanded in T20 World Cup. So it is not true that IPL is only about money," he said. Warne, who captained Rajasthan Royals to win the first edition of the Indian Premier League, said IPL should work with the ICC to create a window for the event.
"IPL has a responsibility towards world cricket and I think they should work with the ICC to create a window so that it becomes mandatory for all the international players to tour India during the IPL. "It will give the Indian players opportunities to rub shoulders with all the great stars and learn. But for that the IPL needs to be short," he said. PTI
