[Watch] From one 'Little Master' to another: Sachin Tendulkar shares advise from Sunil Gavaskar on mentor's birthday
Indian legend Sunil Gavaskar turns 72 today, and the cricketing fraternity around the world has joined hands in wishing him a happy birthday. Sachin Tendulkar, who has often mentioned Gavaskar as his idol, shared an interesting bit of advice he received from the original 'Little Master' in the early part of his career.
Tendulkar shared a short clip on Instagram with the caption:
"Happy Birthday @gavaskarsunilofficial Sir. Wishing you a year full of good health and happiness."
In the clip, Tendulkar talks about the time when he was dismissed cheaply and how a simple piece of advice from Gavaskar stayed with him for the rest of his career. The 48-year-old said in the clip:
"We have interacted on various occasions but I remember, the first time I started playing for India in 1990 after the Lord's Test match where I was dismissed for 27, trying to nudge a ball which was not in line. I could have left the ball but I got out at second slip. That time he walked up to me and said *in marathi* 'Let go of the ball outside, play close to your body.' And that stayed with me."
Tendulkar continued:
"There were some practice sessions after that, I worked on it and that really helped me. Not just that, but on various occasions we have interacted, he continued helping us."
Sunil Gavaskar was recently spotted enjoying himself at the Wimbledon tennis championships alongside Indian wicketkeeper-batsman Dinesh Karthik.
Sunil Gavaskar's special record, which has stood the test of time
Sunil Gavaskar still holds the record for scoring the most Test runs in a debut series. In 1971, the batsman made his international debut against the mighty West Indies away from home.
Sunil Gavaskar played four of the five Tests in the series, amassing 774 runs at a mind-boggling average of 154.80. India won that series 1-0, with the 'Little Master' playing a significant role in the triumph by scoring four hundreds and three fifties in eight innings.
Since then, no one has come close to breaking the record for scoring the most runs in a debut Test series. Apart from Gavaskar, only George Alphonso Headley from West Indies has scored 700-plus runs in a debut Test series. The West Indies star, often referred to as the "Black Bradman," achieved that feat against England in 1929-30 by scoring 703 runs in four Tests.