Sachin Tendulkar against spin bowling

During the playing days of Sachin Tendulkar it was said that he was the better batsman against pace as compared to Brian Lara who was regarded by many as the best batsman against spin bowling. Lara also had the certificate of a certain Muttiah Muralitharan who has said that the left hander was perhaps the only batsman against whom he did not know what he would do once the Prince of Trinidad started to get his bearings right. However, as a sub-continental batsman, bred mostly on good spin bowling Sachin exuded a confidence against spin bowling that no other batsman from outside the subcontinent could replicate and even his statistics would suggest that.

Dismissal in tests against spin bowling

In his 200 tests Sachin has been dismissed by a spinner 92 times. As is the case with right arm quick bowlers, right arm spinners have been more successful against Sachin with 67 dismissals. He has been bowled by such a bowler 5 times and caught by a fielder on 40 occasions off the bowling of a right arm spinner. He has been caught at the wicket off a right arm tweaker on 5 occasions and been adjudged leg before wicket 17 times. They have also dismissed him for no score on two occasions. Against right arm spinners his average stands at 44.23.

Left arm spinners have dismissed Sachin 25 times in tests and out of this 4 times he has been bowled and on 14 occasions he has been caught by a fielder off their bowling. The only time he has been stumped in his distinguished test career has come against a left arm spinner. He has also been adjudged lbw on 6 occasions to a left arm spinner in tests. However, his domination against left arm spinners is evident from his average of 65.52 against such bowlers.

Following is a list of most successful spinners against Sachin in tests:

  • Muttiah Muralitharan – dismissed him 8 times in 19 matches
  • Daniel Vettori – dismissed him 5 times in 15 matches
  • Monty Panesar – dismissed him 4 times in 11 matches
  • Graeme Swann – dismissed him 4 times in 10 matches
  • Nathan Lyon – dismissed him 4 times in 6 matches
  • Shane Warne – dismissed him 3 times in 12 matches
  • Shahid Afridi – dismissed him 3 times in 8 matches
  • Paul Harris – dismissed him 3 times in 7 matches
  • Saqlain Mushtaq – dismissed him 3 times in 4 matches
  • Ray Price – dismissed him 3 times in 2 matches

Dismissal in ODIs against spin bowling

In his 463 one day matches a spinner has been able to dismiss Sachin 67. Right arm spinners have again been more successful against him compared to their left arm counterparts but the margin is fairly negligible. Sachin has lost his wicket to a right arm spinner on 38 occasions in ODIs. On 5 of these occasions he has been bowled and 22 times he has been caught by a fielder. He has been caught by a wicketkeeper off the bowling of a right arm slow bowler on 2 occasions and been stumped 4 times. He has also been adjudged lbw to a right arm spinner on 5 occasions in ODIs and averages 66.23 against them.

Left arm spinners have dismissed Sachin on 29 occasions in ODIs and out of this 8 times he has been bowled. On 15 occasions the Master Blaster has been caught by a fielder off the bowling of a left arm tweaker and caught by a wicketkeeper only once. He has been stumped 3 times off a left arm spinner and been out leg before wicket twice to them. These bowlers have also dismissed him without a score only once – in fact it is the only occasion that Sachin has got out in ODIs without scoring against a spinner. His average against left arm spinners is 50.62.

Following is a list of spinners who have been most successful against Sachin in one day matches:

  • Sanath Jayasuriya – dismissed him 5 times in 71 matches
  • Muttiah Muralitharan – dismissed him 5 times in 47 matches
  • Shoaib Malik – dismissed him 3 times in 24 matches
  • Daniel Vettori – dismissed him 3 times in 20 matches
  • Shane Thomson – dismissed him 3 times in 14 matches
  • Shahid Afridi – dismissed him 2 times in 46 matches
  • Andrew Symmonds – dismissed him 2 times in 33 matches
  • Grant Flower – dismissed him 2 times in 29 matches
  • Saqlain Mushtaq – dismissed him 2 times in 29 matches
  • Mark Waugh – dismissed him 2 times in 26 matches

Read More about Sachin Tendulkar:
Sachin Tendulkar Biography
Playing It My Way Book Review: Sachin Tendulkar’s Autobiography
Top 10 Batsmen in the World of Cricket
Sachin Tendulkar: One of a kind
Who can break Sachin’s record?
Sachin Tendulkar and nervous 90s: just bad luck or more?
Was Sachin a Selfish Player?
Is Sachin an excuse for the BCCI?
The other side of Sachin Tendulkar
Sachin Tendulkar against spin bowling
Sachin Tendulkar against fast bowling
Sachin Tendulkar’s Cricketing Journey
Unforgettable Moments of Sachin’s career
Sachin as the next coach of India
Sachin Tendulkar Records
Childhood of Sachin Tendulkar
Journey of Sachin Tendulkar