Chandigarh: Sachin Tendulkar will play his 170th Test at Mohali on Friday but even after over 20 years in international cricket the senior India batsman says he never takes anything for granted and his success is a reflection of his constant hard work.
“There are ups and downs when you complete a circle of life, its not always about being on the top and in life there are ups and downs but it's important to complete that circle and that's what has happened in my career,” Tendulkar said on the sidelines of the unveiling of Nike apparels for Team India.
Tendulkar, Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir, Harbhajan Singh, Zaheer Khan and Pragyan Ojha donned the new clothing, which will be their official jersey in the upcoming ODI series against Australia.
Tendulkar, who was put questions by cricket commentator Harsha Bhogle at the function here, said there are no short cuts to success.
“I don't want to take anything for granted. I have worked hard over the years to be part of the Indian team. The key thing is to continue to work hard and try and get better each day of the life and make sure that you enjoy every moment and that's what I try to do,” the 37-year-old said.
Asked how old was he when he started playing cricket, Tendulkar said, “I don't want to talk about that, but as long as I am enjoying, it's wonderful to be here (I will continue to play).” Asked about the five-Test match series that used to be played earlier, Tendulkar said, “I think given the current schedule, it's going to be difficult to accommodate that ...
it will take a mega effort to organise it (such a series).” “It requires a different temperament altogether.
Sometimes you start the series brilliantly, but don't end up that well. Sometimes, you start badly, but end up becoming man of the series. It's a great learning curve,” he said.
On the blue colour in the team clothing, the Mumbaikar said, “I like most shades of blue and orange.” For a man who has made his country proud umpteen times, Tendulkar said it is always a moment of pride to wear the tri-colours.
“having it (tri-colour) anywhere is something special. We are proud to wear this colour and we work hard for it...using tri-colour makes us feel special.” Tendulkar holds most batting records under his belt and is on the verge of reaching 14,000 runs in Test cricket.
Closely following him is Australian skipper Ricky Ponting with 12,026 runs but Tendulkar said he doesn't want to talk about records.
“I don't like to talk about records, let others talk about it. I will keep scoring runs. "
