Recent successes have made India fearless: Sachin

London:

Sachin Tendulkar feels that the poor traveller's tag associated with the Indian team has become a thing of the past and the recent successes abroad have made the team a fearless unit capable of beating any side in the world.

Tendulkar said the process of winning matches abroad started in 2001 and since then India have beaten every team in the world "in their own backyard".

"I remember it was from 2000-01 when we started touring much better. That is when we started winning matches abroad and beating the opposition in their own backyard. South Africa, New Zealand, West Indies, England and Australia virtually all the teams in the world we have toured well and beaten them," he said.

"It did not happen overnight it was a process. But, because of that (successes) we have started having that fearless approach. So now we are in a comfort zone, we are absolutely fearless but also sensible at the same time," Tendulkar told BBC Sport.

"We have a fantastic team combination and that is why there have seen fantastic results," he added.

Tendulkar also feels that India have the balance in batting and bowling to win the Twenty20 World Cup in England. "I am hoping that India win the World Cup because we have all the required ammunitions," he said.

"We have got an explosive batting, well balanced bowling attack and a fantastic captain. We have the combination and strength it is all about execution and I hope we play well and pull it through," said Tendulkar who had voluntarily pulled out of the Indian Twenty20 squad.

Tendulkar, who owns several batting records in Test and one-day cricket, said his only dream was to play for the country and win matches, and milestones that come along were secondary for him.

"My biggest dream was to play cricket for India and play as long as possible. I did not play for records like I will score 40 hundreds in Test and 40 hundreds in ODIs. I did not think of all these things. I just wanted to walk out in the middle, score as many runs and win matches for India. I want to live that dream to the fullest."

Talking about the most memorable performances of his career, Tendulkar said, "There have been many bright points in my career. The way we played the World Cup in South Africa in 2003 was very special. Also, the (ODI) win against Australia in Sharjah in 1998 was fantastic.

"There have been many tours (where we did well). The wins against Australia in Australia and the series in England, the Test win against England at home last year in Chennai where we chased down 383 in the fourth innings were special."