Could two batting records fall in this Sydney Test?

Psst Sachin- I'll break Lara's record, and then you get your 100th century.

In truth, this test is all but over with India resembling a group of men that have dug their own graves for Australia to duly bury them in. This means that an embarrassingly bad Indian performance has killed the game off as a spectacle, and with it, degenerating into a one sided affair with one result that seems all but certain. This is the sad reality for objective fans wanting to buy into the thrill of a real contest, but the pay off might be bearing witness to two remarkable records being achieved in the last three days of this Test.

In respect to Michael Clarke breaking Brian Lara‘s Test highest score record of 400 and then Sachin Tendulkar finally bringing up his 100th International century.

I am sure on the back of my other predictions in this series so far, that as soon as I have typed that, it will mean that Clarke gets out first ball tomorrow and Tendulkar follows with a golden duck!

Forgetting cruel fate embarrassing me again, lets look at the merits of both.

Michael Clarke Breaking Brian Lara’s Mark

At present Michael Clark is 251* with his Team 291 ahead of India’s first innings of 191 at Stumps on Day 2. This means that he has the time to achieve the 150 runs needed to beat Lara’s mark of 400.

There are many things in his favour, with the pitch being the epitome of a batting paradise coupled with the Indian bowlers having being grounded into the turf losing all their vigour. Aiding in his cause is the India Captain M.S Dhoni who has gone into game saving mode by pushing the fields back in a supremely defensive manner.

This allows a very smart batsman like Clarke to just milk the attack through the gaps for singles and two’s with little or no risk attached to his play. If he was intent on getting to the milestone, I would be very confident in him achieving it.

Herein lies the greatest factor against Lara’s mark being broken.

The fact that Michael Clarke is without doubt one of the most selfless players in the game and his soul intention is an Australian win. This duly means he will acknowledge the time left in the game, but also have the flatness of the pitch in all his thoughts. So he will attack with vigour from ball one tomorrow to get the lead above the region of 400-450 by around Tea, that will more than likely see him gift his wicket by trying to up the run rate

Duly making me think he has a 30% chance of going past Lara’s record of 400 because of his Team first mindset.

Sachin Tendulkar getting his 100th International Century

When the declaration comes, it will be near certain that India will have over 2 days to bat on what is still a pitch that is a batting paradise. This means that they will be put into draw mode, that will dictate them taking a no risk approach in their batting while setting up a perfect platform for Sachin to finally get his iconic 100th hundred.

The main thing against him is the excellence of the Australian bowlers, who have destroyed the Indian top order and put Sachin under constant pressure. That acid will be even more biting with the state of the game so in Australia’s advantage meaning that the fields will be ultra attacking with many in close.

In a sense, this could work in Sachin’s favour because it will make for plenty of gaps that he can hit boundaries through and turn the scoreboard over in his favour.

The Australians who have had great tactics against Tendulkar, where they have acknowledged his desire to score freely by drying up his scoring rate through their heady bowling to smart fields. They have also bowled to him on a line a foot outside off stump with a very guarded off side field. This means to score, he has to take a major risk by trying to pierce that field, with his masterful onside play being neutralised.

Despite the manner in which Australia has controlled Sachin through their excellent bowling in support of brilliant tactics, I just think the immense pride of the man means that Tendulkar will be determined to restore some Indian pride in what has being a shameful performance in the series so far.

Making me give him an 75% chance of his memorable 100th Century.