Bradman Vs Tendulkar - A Comparison

Sachin Tendulkar has been on the cricket scene forwickets he was a veritable run machine and
nearly two decades and has piled up records galore.Tendulkar may not be able to match that. Bradman's
Bradman also had a career span of two decadesrecord of hitting 300 runs in day is indeed difficult to
(though a portion was cut short by the war years)emulate. But then it is a matter of conjecture as to
and has the highest first class and test battinghow the Don would have fared facing the likes of
average ever. But when you compare two greatsMankad and Ghulam Ahmed on rank turners in India.
from different eras comparisons can apt to getWould he have had the same effect? Also how
colored. Thus it is important to fix some parameterswould the Don have fared in the West Indies and
while judging the greats.facing bowlers like Holding on fast and fiery wickets
As far as cricket is concerned the period whenlike at Kingston.
Bradman played his cricket, it was not a Global sportTendulker with his recent 200 not out in a one day
and most of the Dons career centered on playinggame against the South Africans has achieved the
fields in Australia and England. It was certainly notimpossible. One day cricket is a different ball game
Bradmans fault,but then it has to be considered thatbut Bradmans 309 not out in a day in a test could be
Bradman made his records only in two countries andranked as a similar effort. Over a period of time
never toured the sub continent or the West Indies.figures do not lie and it is here that Bradman scores.
Tendulkar on the other hand has played most of hisHis batting average of 99 just cannot be surpassed.
cricket in an era when the game is globalised andThe greats like Hammond, Sutcliff, Sobers, Richards
thus he his has played cricket in venues as diverse asand Gavaskar all lag behind by at least 35 to 40
Durban and Kingston to Lords and Auckland. He haspercentage points.
batted on all types of wickets and his records standTo judge any cricketer from a different era is not
after his having batted at all cricketing venues aroundeasy, but one can surmise that Tendulkar may be
the world and faced all types of bowling.close to Bradman and perhaps his equal. The Don
Bradman when faced with the infamous body linewas a great player but he had limitations of his era
series of the early thirties was cut to size andand Tendulkar has done well in a different era and
returned an ordinary average. Harold Larwood playedmaybe he could be ranked close to the Don in
hell into the Australian team at that time. This seriescrickets hall of fame.
showed the Don as human. But on hard batting