Chapter 69: The Cauldron
The middle overs at the Wankhede usually followed a script. The spinners would come on, the run rate would dip, and the crowd would settle into a murmuring hum.
But today, the script had been burned.
Sachin Tendulkar was in the mood.
Shane Warne, the greatest leg-spinner in history, marked his run-up. He wasn't smiling. He had dismissed Sachin many times, but he had been destroyed by him more often.
[STADIUM CROWD REACTION]
"WARNE! WARNE! WARNE!"
A section of the crowd chanted, trying to bait the Australian.
But the majority drowned them out.
"SACHIN! SACHIN!"
[COMMENTARY BOX]
Ravi Shastri: "This is what we paid for! The magician vs the master. Warne has a slip, a leg slip, and a silly point. He is attacking. But Tendulkar... look at those eyes. He is in the zone."
Harsha Bhogle: "It's a chess match played at 100 miles per hour. Warne is tossing it up, daring him to drive. Sachin is waiting. The patience is palpable."
The Battle of Legends
