Hundred in Chennai after 26/11 my best : Sachin

Batting maestro Sachin Tendulkar rated the century he scored in Chennai against England that helped India chase 387 runs in the fourth innings soon after the 26/11 terror attacks in Mumbai as the best of his career.

“It was not about the Test match but about something, which happened two weeks before that. Something that had happened in Mumbai. It was difficult to prepare for a Test (under those circumstances). It was gracious of England to come here,” Tendulkar said.

“There were all sorts of talks around and then suddenly all our focus was on the match. England dominated the match for almost four days before Virendra 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),” he said.

He scored an unbeaten 100 as India upset all calculations to score an unlikely six-wicket victory over England while chasing a target of 387.