IND vs ENG: Placing Anderson’s name ahead of Tendulkar in Trophy renaming saga irks Gavaskar

Indian batting legend Sunil Gavaskar wasn’t happy with the ECB’s decision to first retire the Pataudi Trophy and, secondly, for placing James Anderson’s name ahead of Sachin Tendulkar in its renaming saga. The moment the ECB decided to rename the Pataudi Trophy, awarded to the winner of the India-England Test series in England, to the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy, it made fans question its order. While countless expressed displeasure on social media, Gavaskar, after whom the Test series between India and Australia goes by – the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, was the first high-profile name to raise questions about it.

Barring the idea of placing Anderson’s name ahead of Tendulkar on the alphabetical order, Gavaskar wasn’t convinced by any reason offered for the same. Though he kept the English quick in the highest regard by even calling him a bowling legend, which, going by his Test wickets and records, he is, Gavaskar said, overlooking Sachin Tendulkar’s stature and impact on the game is not even comparable to Anderson's.

"The ECB is fully entitled to call the series by any name they choose, but for most, if not all, Indian cricket lovers, it is jarring to know that Anderson's name comes first. Not only is Sachin Tendulkar, along with Kapil Dev, the greatest Indian cricketer, but also senior to Anderson by more than a dozen years.

“He is numero uno as far as runs and centuries are concerned in Test cricket, but also at the one-day level too; he has more runs than anybody else. Anderson is third in the list of wicket-takers in Test cricket, and his record is nowhere as good as Tendulkar's in one-day cricket," Gavaskar wrote in his column for the Mid-Day.

Gavaskar added that, unlike Anderson, Sachin has won a World Cup, and although Anderson’s home record is phenomenal, his away numbers are not that interesting, unlike Sachin’s home and away numbers.

"Tendulkar is also part of a World Cup-winning team, which Anderson has not been. Jimmy Anderson was a terrific bowler, but mainly in English conditions, and his record away is nowhere near as good as Tendulkar's is. So, by all accounts, Tendulkar's name should come first.

“This argument that they are going by the letters of the alphabet, where the letter A comes before T, is such a lame one, for there's simply no comparison with what Tendulkar has done and achieved and what Anderson has for their respective countries. Please don’t misunderstand, there's massive respect for Anderson, but as an Indian, for me, Tendulkar will always be above him. I also urge all Indian cricket lovers, including the Indian media, to call it the Tendulkar-Anderson Trophy,” he continued.