Surfaces will decide how active the spinners get : Sachin Tendulkar, on India-England Test series

At 30 degree Celsius, the English weather is quite warm this summer. The idea of a such a weather should be motivating for the Indian team as they will be facing England in a Test series. The warm weather will mean that the spinners could have a bigger say due to the dryness of the wickets. Sachin Tendulkar believes the surfaces will be playing a major role in determining how effective the spinners will be in this weather. The weather conditions, according to Tendulkar is going to be a critical factor throughout the series.

“It's quite warm here. Weather's going to be a critical factor. Surfaces will decide how active the spinners get. If this weather stays,” said Tendulkar.

Referring to recent performances, Tendulkar believes that Indian batsmen should be capable of handling English spin better than the English can handle Indias'. As per weather conditions, Tendulkar believes India will on an equal footing with the hosts, if not at a relative advantage. He has also noted that the pitches over there do not have enough grass cover.

Tendulkar has mentioned that the team will need to keep in mind the previous disastrous experiences in 2011 and 2014, alongside the fact that those unpleasant memories are not constant.

“It helps to remember how an earlier experience of the same tour was unpleasant (2014). Yet, what's also important to remember is that change is the only constant. In a different time, in a different setting, in relatively different conditions and a different set of players, it's again a new contest. You move on, set yourself a new challenge,” Tendulkar said.

“The first basic rule (of an overseas tour): Respect conditions. It's the key. The first morning of the series, that first over, the first spell- that's always the key. It was the same in South Africa, it'll be the same in England,” he added.

Tendulkar, citing the example of Cheteshwar Pujara, mentioned that it's better for the team to respect the conditions in which they are playing. Recently, Pujara took approximately 70 balls to get off the mark, which could indicate a certain level of psychological struggle. According to Tendulkar, a batsman should know the balance between "tearing and wearing" down the opponent.

“There needs to be a good deal of balance between wearing down the opposition and tearing them down. Batsmen need to understand that balance,” said Tendulkar.

“Use your own discretion, follow your own judgement. When I used to be in the dressing room, waiting for my turn to walk out to bat, I never went by what was happening to the batsmen on the field,” he added.