On ‘Toughest Bowler’ Praise From Sachin Tendulkar, Ex-Pakistan Star’s Honest Take

Indian cricket team has had some extraordinary batters over the years but no one has been able to match the greatness of the legendary Sachin Tendulkar. The Master Blaster had a huge career of 24 years and broke numerous records with the bat. However, one bowler who always used to trouble Tendulkar was Pakistan’s former all-rounder Abdul Razzaq. There used to be a tough-time for Tendulkar whenever he would be facing Razzaq and after his retirement he even praised the all-rounder for his greatness.

Talking about Sachin’s praise, Razzaq expressed his gratitude towards the Indian legend for mentioning his name among the greats and stated that it was his kind and humble nature that he did it.

“First of all, Sachin Tendulkar was and will always remain a world-class batsman. However, the star that he was and the kind of fan following which he had, Sachin didn’t need to say it (that Razzaq was a tough bowler to face). I never understood Sachin’s need to take my name. He could have named anyone – Glenn McGrath, Wasim Akram, Waqar Younis, Ambrose and Walsh, Muralitharan and Shane Warne. So he didn’t need to,” Razzaq said on The Nadir Ali podcast.

“It was his greatness. The words he chose for me – and I’ve said this earlier as well – he was being too kind. Not once; he said it quite a few times. Even Sehwag did. A bunny is someone who constantly troubles a batter. But I never gloated in it too much,” he added.

Earlier in March, Razzaq had revealed that it was Virender Sehwag that the Pakistan team considered the ‘most dangerous’, with Tendulkar occupying the second spot in the list.

“Virender Sehwag was the most dangerous player. After that Sachin Tendulkar. Pakistan used to plan against Sehwag and Tendulkar. Our plan used to be like – if we get these two wickets – Sehwag and Tendulkar – we will win the match. In bowling, our batsmen used to plan against Zaheer Khan. Irfan Pathan was there too for some time. Harbhajan Singh was there. These were the big names who played big matches and performed for their country,” Razzaq revealed in a chat with the Times of India.