My delivery to Sachin at Wankhede better than Warne’s ball of the century, claims Monty Panesar
Former England spinner Monty Panesar, who was the key architect in England’s historic 2-1 series win over India in 2012, has claimed that his ‘magic ball’ at the Wankhede to Sachin was better than Warne’s ball of the century. Panesar finished the 2012 tour of India with 17 wickets to his name.
Heading into the 2012/13 tour of India, England, a team historically deemed to be nothing more than walkovers in the subcontinent, were given little but any chance of avoiding a whitewash but a spirited Three Lions, under the leadership of Alastair Cook, stunned the home side 2-1 to breach the fortress.
The historic upset was rendered possible by left-arm spinner Monty Panesar, who spun a web around the Indians, taking 17 wickets in the 3 Tests he played. And one of those 17 scalps - and perhaps a series-defining one - was his wicket of the legendary Sachin Tendulkar in the first innings of the second Test in Wankhede, where the left-arm spinner made the ball kiss the top-of-off after pitching it well outside leg-stump. It was a delivery that left Sachin shell-shocked and reflecting on the ball eight years later, Panesar described it as something better than Shane Warne’s ‘ball of the century’ to Mike Gatting.
"You look at that delivery. His balance was perfect, but he completely misjudged the length, the curve on the ball, and he honestly thought it was just a ball that was going to skid on, with the pace that I bowled, towards leg stump. But it didn't. It was a great ball. It was something that I would say was probably a better ball than Shane Warne (to Gatting),” Panesar, whose ball to Sachin was named the 20th in ESPNCricinfo’s ‘balls of the century’ told the website.
"When I bowled that ball to Tendulkar, I could remember the training I did," Panesar said. "When I bowled (in the Tests) I was like, gosh, I feel so fit, I feel strong, my action feels great, I felt like I could really flight the ball and spin it. I remember saying to myself, right, I want to hit the top of off stump. That was it."
Panesar, who dismissed Sachin in both innings at Wankhede and claimed 11 wickets in total in the game which England won by 10 wickets, revealed that he just looked at the pitch and visualized the delivery. The left-arm spinner added that he never expected to dismiss the batsmen in such emphatic fashion.
"Sometimes it's the visualisation, isn't it?" Panesar said. "I remember when I listened to Glenn McGrath's videos, he said it's the feel. Sometimes I look at the spot (on the pitch), sometimes it's the feel. I didn't think I was going to get the batsman out like that. I just thought, let me get this ball to hit the top of off stump. Sachin paaji tried to play it towards mid-on, and it kind of pitched and hit off stump.”
Panesar’s career, unfortunately, went downhill post the India tour but eight years on, his 17-wicket-haul remains the best and the most impactful performance by an overseas spinner on Indian soil in this century.