Former England spinner Monty Panesar says he “felt on top of the world” after he claimed Indian legend Sachin Tendulkar as his first wicket in Test cricket.
Panesar trapped Tendulkar lbw on day three of England’s opening test in Nagpur during their 2006 tour of India. He finished with match figures of 3-131, also taking the wicket of Mohammad Kaif in India’s first innings and Rahul Dravid in their second. But Panesar admitted that Tendulkar’s dismissal will always be his favourite.
“I felt like I was on top of the world. I remember when Aleem Dar gave it out, I just couldn’t believe it,” the former Northampton and Sussex off-spinner said on the Monty Panesar & The Specialist Fielders podcast. “When you play cricket you have these instincts, if there’s a batsman that comes down the wicket you just naturally drop it short, it’s just instinct. The same thing happened when I appealed.
“His pads are really wide, and I can’t see the stumps, the only thing I can see is his pads and I’m just going to appeal. I didn’t know it was Tendulkar at the other end. It was just heat of the moment, just instinct. If at the time I knew it was Tendulkar maybe I wouldn’t have appealed.”
In total, Panesar took 167 Test wickets at an average of 34.71. He added: “When Aleem Dar gave it out I just went ballistic. You’re in the moment, it’s so hot and humid as well. I just ran towards point to celebrate; I had never celebrated a wicket like that before.
[breakout id=”0″][/breakout] “After the match, the physio said, ‘Sachin is happy to sign the ball.’ I was like ‘Oh my, this guy is an amazing human being.’ That was really kind because there’s a lot of sportspeople out there who don’t really think how joyous that moment is for another individual. But he said, ‘yeah, I’ll sign the ball for you’. After he signed it, he said, ‘once in a blue moon mate, never again.’”
