'Fidgety' Sachin Tendulkar a disciplinarian, remembers Greg Chappell
The former India coach says Sachin Tendulkar was very fussy and he didn't like his routine being changed, so whatever he had done before he kept doing.
Eulogising Sachin Tendulkar for his fastidious preparation before every game, former India coach Greg Chappell says his attention to detail was amazing even as he was "fussy" about some things.
Tendulkar announced his retirement after playing his 200th Test at home in a series against the West Indies next month. A flood of tributes followed after his announcement.
Chappell, who coached India from 2005-2007, revealed that Tendulkar had some amazing idiosyncrasies.
"He was very fussy about his batting and his bats and he used to spend hours and hours with a scalpel just cleaning and scraping his bat. It was all about the visual to him," Chappell said.
"When Tendulkar batted in the middle, he didn't want to see a single blemish on his bat. If his bat didn't look exactly right or feel exactly right, then he didn't feel right. His attention to detail was amazing," Chappell told The Courier-Mail. (Read full story)
"Tendulkar's routine leading into a game was very particular ...he liked to do everything in the same way he had done before the previous game. He was very fixated on that.
"For instance, he would have the same person throw balls to him in the same certain way, every time. He was very fussy and he didn't like his routine being changed, so whatever he had done before he kept doing.
"A lot of cricketers are a bit obsessive and have superstitions and you certainly do need a level of routine at the highest level of the game. But Tendulkar's routine was like nothing I have ever seen before or since," Chappell said.