T20 should never come up at Test cricket's cost: Tendulkar

New Delhi:

Twenty20 cricket's rising popularity notwithstanding, Indian batting maestro Sachin Tendulkar feels the format should never be allowed to grow at the expense of Test cricket, which "requires more skills".

"I don't think that one should make that compromise (of Twenty20 spreading at the cost of Test cricket)," Tendulkar told the latest issue of 'GQ' magazine.

"Test cricket definitely requires more skills. In a Twenty20 match, if somebody has batted well for 45 minutes, he has done brilliantly. But that doesn't happen in Test cricket, where you have to bat well for a couple of sessions (about four hours)," he added.

Tendulkar feels bowlers don't concede an inch in Test cricket but would be more than happy to give away singles in Twenty20 as they know only big hits can work to a team's advantage in the shortest format.

"In Twenty20 cricket, a bowler is happy giving you singles. In Test cricket, they are trying to get you out all the time," explained the man who has played just one Twenty20 match for the national team.

The veteran right-hander said the current Indian team is a fabulous one and a unit that everyone would want to captain.

"I don't think there is anybody on the Indian team who wouldn't want to captain such a fantastic side. Not because they want to grab it or whatever, but because ... It is a fabulous team," he said.