"Most of our other batsmen weren’t even able to get bat on ball" - Sourav Ganguly recalls 'best innings' of Sachin Tendulkar's career

Former India skipper Sourav Ganguly has witnessed a large part of Sachin Tendulkar's career as his teammate. Ganguly feels the hundred that Tendulkar scored at Perth in 1992 is the best innings of his entire career.

Ganguly recently recalled how tough it was to bat on that Perth wicket against one of the best bowling attacks of the time. He also shed light on the massive difference between how others batted on the pitch and how Tendulkar did, as the then 18-year-old Tendulkar smashed 114 runs of the highest quality.

In the book 'Sachin@50', here's what Sourav Ganguly had to say about that Perth hundred from Sachin Tendulkar:

"The WACA pitch is now slower than in 1992, and it was undoubtedly one of the hardest wickets to bat on. Sachin’s height made it more challenging to negotiate the excessive bounce, for it was impossible for a short man to play shots in front of the wicket.

"I can say it was the best innings of his career. To score a hundred on that wicket against the Australian bowling attack was simply sensational. Most of our other batsmen weren’t even able to get bat on ball, and here was an 18-year-old putting together a batting master class."

Sourav Ganguly also spoke about another hundred by Sachin Tendulkar on the same tour, which came at Sydney. He recalled the lack of sleep that Tendulkar had the night before and how just a short nap at the dining table was enough for him to get all the energy he needed to score a brilliant 148.

"I remember telling him that if he was to play the next day, he desperately needed to sleep," Ganguly said. "He said he couldn’t and started telling me where he would hit McDermott and the others! The next day, he said to me that he was starved of sleep and that he’d nap on the dining table in the team dressing room at the SCG."

"He asked me to wake him up at the fall of the next wicket," Ganguly went on. "Sachin was to bat at number six, and I woke him up when Azhar [Mohd. Azharuddin] got out. He said he was refreshed now that he’d had some sleep. It was odd how he could sleep on a dining table!"

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Sachin Tendulkar is as close to perfection as you can get: Sourav Ganguly

Ganguly and Tendulkar have a strong bond of friendship

Sourav Ganguly also opined that scoring 100 international centuries is what separates Sachin Tendulkar from other batters. The former India captain reckons that Tendulkar's hunger to convert his fifties into hundreds coupled with his consistency made him the best batter he had ever seen.

"I haven’t seen [Sir Don] Bradman, but he is as close to perfection as you can get," Ganguly said. "His insatiable hunger and incredible talent made him an absolute genius. When people say things about him, I point to them the 100 international hundreds. Can you imagine the hunger and motivation of a player who has achieved that? He is the best I have seen and will ever see. No batsman in the next decade and more can score 100 international hundreds."

Sourav Ganguly and Sachin Tendulkar have been friends ever since their U-14 camp in Indore all those years back.