Hundred in Chennai after 26/11 is my best: Sachin

Mumbai, May 28 (PTI) He has played many a memorable
knocks but Sachin Tendulkar considers the Test hundred he
scored just a fortnight after the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks
as the best of his career so far.
"It was not about the Test match but about something
which happened two weeks before that. Something had happened
in Mumbai. It was difficult to prepare for a Test (under those
circumstances). It was gracious of England to come here," said
Tendulkar, who along with wife Anjali, hosted a fund-raising
dinner for the 'Crusade against Cancer Foundation' here
Thursday night.
"There were all sorts of talks and then suddenly all our
focus was on the match. England dominated the match for almost
four days before Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir brought us
back into it," he recounted.
"Generally when we win, it is the groundsmen who run to
congratulate us, but on that day the groundswomen rushed to
congratulate us. It was just because of something that had
numbed the nation," he said.
"By no means India winning a Test match could compensate
the lives lost. But for our team, we had succeeded in bringing
a fraction of a smile on the faces of the people. That is why
the hundred in Chennai Test match will be the best (of my
career)," Tendulkar said.
The right-hander scored an unbeaten 100 as India upset
all calculations to score an unlikely six-wicket victory over
England while chasing a target of 387.
Tendulkar, who shared experiences of his life and
answered questions by noted commentator Harsha Bhogale and the
audience, said he has not given a thought to life after
retirement as yet.
"As a child I had dreamt of playing for India and I am
still living my dream. Hopefully, I am good enough to play for
some more time. When I play cricket, the centre of focus
should be cricket and nothing else. I may explore what I want
to do when I retire from cricket. Right now I want to focus my
energies on cricket," he added.
The master batsman, who made his international debut
against Pakistan in 1989 in Karachi, said he does not remember
the first of his over 31,000 runs in international cricket as
he was too nervous on the occasion.

"I don't remember my first run. The first match was a
blur. I don't remember walking in. I was asking myself whether
I belonged here. I was told by my seniors to spend some time
in the middle and luckily I could do it," Tendulkar said.
Tendulkar said he does not regret quitting Twenty20
after playing just one match in this form of the game.
"I made a decision in 2008 and will stick to that," he
added.
At a time when cricketers' personal lives are becoming
fodder for gossip in the media, Tendulkar said one of the
reasons why his life remains out of spotlight is his simple
upbringing.
"It's perhaps to do with lifestyle. I came from a simple
family. There were no major celebrations whenever I had a good
performance. It was just putting sweets in front of god. That
was in the childhood. It was an unwritten rule. Brother Ajit
made sure it stayed that way," he added.
If he ever sat down to write a biography, Tendulkar said
the first page of the book would be about his family.
"The first page has to be my family. My brother is the
reason I started playing cricket. My father, mother, sisters
(it is with them) that my cricket started and it will end with
my children," he added.
Tendulkar thanked Dr P Jagannath of the 'Crusade against
Cancer foundation' and complimented his wife Anjali for
backing the campaign against cancer.
"The kind of response we have seen is remarkable. If by
donating generously one can help a cancer patient, I don't
think anything is better than that," he said.
Meanwhile, Jagannath said that the overall donations
received by the 'Crusade against Cancer foundation' had
crossed over Rs 1.30 crore. PTI VKV
RBT