On the eve of India's 1000th ODI, Sachin Tendulkar speaks up for bowlers

Sachin Tendulkar special were the three constants for an Indian from the 1990s to 2010. “Sachin kitne pe hain yaar” was the question often asked rather than India’s score. The refreshing approach he showed towards batting, especially in limited-overs cricket, even as a 16-year-old hitting a 17-ball 53 in an exhibition match in Peshawar, had the fans hooked for all the 463 appearances he made for India. “I showed I could play a few shots and generate power for a guy who doesn’t have a big frame and earned an ODI spot for myself,” is his modest assessment of his heroics against Abdul Qadir, Wasim Akram and Mushtaq Ahmed, in what could be the first Twenty20 game ever played, as rain ruled out a full international match and because of the huge crowd presence, India and Pakistan decided to play an exhibition match of 20 overs per innings. “Not a bad strike-rate even in today’s T20 era,” he later says, shedding a few ounces of that modesty.

As India gets set to play its 1000th ODI against West Indies at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on Sunday, Tendulkar took time out to reflect on the evolution of the ODI game. Surprisingly, he started with expressing sympathies for a tribe he often treated with disdain. Fast bowlers. “In the last 10 years, I have hardly seen reverse swing,” he laments and feels the introduction of two new balls from each end has caused it. New field restrictions (since 2013) also means one spot always available to go over the top. “So much has changed,” he reflects. “We used to play a lot with the red ball and at venues in eastern India where games used to start at 8.45 am. The dampness in the pitch aided seam movement and the SG ball used to reverse beautifully too. Fast bowlers could plan their