"Each dot ball was appreciated unbelievably" - Sachin Tendulkar recalls his last-over heroics with the ball in the Hero Cup 1993 semi-final against South Africa 

India's batting maestro Sachin Tendulkar is often hailed as one of the best batters to have ever played the game. However, alongside his performances with the bat, he has also contributed significantly to India's success with his tidy bowling spells on multiple occasions.

The Little Master's brilliant last-over heroics in the Hero Cup 1993 semi-final against South Africa are still etched in the memory of ardent cricket fans.

Tendulkar recently published a video on his YouTube channel on Wednesday, November 24. He gave fans a glimpse of what was going through his mind during this critical juncture of the game.

The 24th of November marked 28 years since the the all-important semi-final of the multi-nation tournament. Tendulkar needed to defend 6 runs off the final over against South Africa. In his video, he pointed out that he had not bowled a single over in the match as his body and fingers were stiff.

Despite this, he felt confident of bowling the last over, even under severe pressure. Skipper Mohammad Azharuddin ultimately tossed the ball to him for the crucial over.

Tendulkar conceded just 3 runs from the over to help India register a momentous victory. He noted that support from the crowd made a big difference in unnerving the opposition batters. Here's what he said:

"When we met in the middle, I told Azhar that I am more than happy to bowl and I am confident that I can bowl this over. Every ball and every run mattered. But the way the crowd was with us was incredible. Each dot ball was appreciated unbelievably and that mounted pressure on them."

Watch the full video here:

"I am obviously going to bowl a yorker" - Sachin Tendulkar reveals his conversation with wicketkeeper Vijay Yadav

Tendulkar recalled how the wicketkeeper stood up to the stumps for his first five deliveries. However, he planned to bowl a yorker on the last ball and thus asked Yadav to stand back.

He mentioned he did not want to risk the ball trickling down to the boundary after taking an inside edge. Interestingly enough, there was an inside edge on the final ball, which was ultimately stopped by the keeper.

Tendulkar added:

"When the last ball was to be bowled, till then the keeper was standing right up the stumps. Before the last ball, Vijay Yadav came to me to ask what did I plan on bowling. I said that I am obviously going to bowl a yorker. So we decided that the keeper has to go back."

Watch the video of Sachin Tendulkar defending 6 runs off the final over here:

While Tendulkar's last appearance in international cricket came in November 2013, he continues to remain the most prolific run-scorer in world cricket to date in ODIs and Test matches. He mustered 18,426 runs in 463 ODIs and 15,921 runs in 200 Tests. Notably, he is also the only player to have scored 100 centuries in international cricket.