16 September 2023 last updated at 00:42 GMT
 
Mumbai was ideal for 100th ton: Dada
Saturday 26 November 2011

Former India skipper Sourav Ganguly expressed his disappointment at Sachin Tendulkar missing out on his 100th international ton and feels that Mumbai was the most ideal place for him to reach the coveted landmark.

Tendulkar was out on 94 off Ravi Rampaul's bowling on the fourth day of the third and final Test between India and West Indies on Friday.

As Tendulkar was inching towards the milestone, Ganguly, who is now playing the Ranji Trophy for Bengal, stopped the nets session at Jadavpur University ground in Salt Lake to catch the action on TV but only to return disappointed, like millions of fans all over the world.

"It's really disappointing. Mumbai would have been the best place for him to get to that 100th international century," Ganguly said.

"It's just a matter of time. It will happen the way he has reached to 99 (international) centuries. It's just a number. Maybe next time..."

Meanwhile, former Pakistan skipper Wasim Akram also expressed his disappointment, saying reaching the historic mark would have been "great achievement."

"I was disappointed. Everybody wanted Sachin to get 100. I personally wanted Sachin to get his 100th hundred. It would have been a great achievement. In fact, an achievement others would find difficult to emulate," Akram told reporters on Friday.

Akram, however, congratulated R Ashwin, who scored his maiden Test century.

"But again, Ashwin got his 100. I congratulate him as well," he said.

Asked whether the off-spinner has the makings of an all-rounder, he said it was too early to predict.

"Any cricketer who has scored a hundred in a Test means he can bat. It means he has got the talent. Ashwin should know he has got the talent to score at high levels, but for that he has to work hard. Generally, we all know how talented a bowler he is," said Akram.

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