Former India captain Sunil Gavaskar has criticised the renaming of the Test trophy between England and India, claiming that it should have been 'Tendulkar-Anderson' rather than 'Anderson-Tendulkar'.
Test series played between India and England in England were known as the Pataudi Trophy, in honour of Iftikhar Ali Khan Pataudi, the only player to represent both countries in Test cricket. His son, 'Tiger' Pataudi also played Test cricket, and is regarded as one of India's finest captains. The trophy was first awarded in 2007, to mark the 75th anniversary of the first England-India Test. Test series between these sides in India are played for the Anthony De Mello Trophy.
Ahead of the latest series, however, the decision was made to rename the Pataudi Trophy to the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy, after two giants of the modern-day game in James Anderson and Sachin Tendulkar. The Pataudi Medal will be awarded to the winning captain of the series, ensuring the family's legacy is retained in some form.
Gavaskar has now criticised the move, but for the ordering of names in its new title.
Gavaskar: Urge Indian cricket lovers to call it Tendulkar-Anderson Trophy
“The ECB [England and Wales Cricket Board] is fully entitled to call the series by any name they choose,” Gavaskar wrote in Mid-day. “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 in one-day cricket.
“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. I also urge all Indian cricket lovers including the India media to call it the Tendulkar-Anderson Trophy.”
Read more: Not all history needs everlasting preservation – it is the right call to rename the Pataudi Trophy
Gavaskar was also one of the first to criticise reports of the move away from calling it the Pataudi Trophy in the first place, writing in Sportstar that it showed “a total lack of sensitivity to the contribution made by the Pataudis to cricket in both England and India.”
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