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Cricket's greatest batsmen: Sachin Tendulkar v Don Bradman

Tendulkar and Bradman

Sachin Tendulkar with a bust of Don Bradman which was presented to him by Cricket Australia. Picture: Gregg Porteous Source: DailyTelegraph

THE cricketing cognoscenti are largely united when it comes to naming history's two greatest batsmen: Sir Donald Bradman and Sachin Tendulkar.

But as for identifying the greatest of the pair? That remains one of the game's most polarising debates.

WHO IS THE GREATEST? HAVE YOUR SAY BELOW.

Many have attempted to anoint a winner. A Griffith University researcher, Dr Nicholas Rohde, crunched the numbers two years ago and determined Tendulkar was superior to Bradman. Others, like Steve Waugh, have relied on less scientific and more subjective measures to declare Bradman's brand of batsmanship as cricket in excelsis.

Here, we look at some of the factors that, by any standard, have propelled Bradman and Tendulkar beyond all-comers. As for picking the No.1 - we'll leave that for you to decide.

Don Bradman

Australian cricketer Sir Donald (Don) Bradman batting at Leicester in 1948. Source: HWT Image Library

THE AVERAGES

No one in the 126-year history of cricket has come close to matching Bradman's mark of 99.94. And no one is likely to in the centuries to come. Of batsmen to have played in excess of 50 Tests, Herbert Sutcliffe remains Bradman's closest rival with an average of 60.73. Bradman's 29 Test centuries included ten double tons and two triples, headlined by a career-best 334 against England at Headingley in 1930. He also boasted a first class average of 95.14.

While the sheer magnitude of Bradman's feats catch the eye, it is the consistency of Tendulkar's record across three formats that astonishes. Tendulkar has averaged 53.86 in Tests, 44.83 in ODIs and 32.90 in domestic Twenty20s (he has played just a solitary T20 international).

Advantage: Bradman

Sachin Tendulkar

Sachin Tendulkar sweeps Stuart MacGill during a Test at the SCG in 2004. Picture: Phil Hillyard Source: DailyTelegraph

THE AGGREGATES

Get out the calculators. Tendulkar has amassed a run tally most would have considered impossible prior to his Test debut as a 16-year-old against Pakistan in 1989. Tendulkar has scored 15,837 runs over his Test career with two matches remaining - 2,459 clear of his nearest rival Ricky Ponting. Add to that 18,426 ODI runs and a handful more in T20Is and you have a grand total of 34,273 international runs. Quite simply, the world has never seen an international run machine like Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar.

Bradman's feats are not to be underestimated, though. Eric Hollies might have denied him the four runs required for 7,000, but his tally of 6,996 was nonetheless remarkable for an era in which cricket was an occasion, not a commodity, and scheduling was determined by handshake agreements rather than inflexible broadcast contracts. Bradman's first class tally of 28,067 should also be noted, including his then-world record high score of 452 not out.

Advantage: Tendulkar

Don Bradman

Captain Don Bradman (3rd L) with 1948 Australian tourists on ship travelling to England. Source: HWT Image Library

THE CONDITIONS

Bradman played his entire career on uncovered wickets, whereas Tendulkar has undoubtedly benefited from playing the majority of his career on the low, slow wickets of the subcontinent (he has contested 121 of 198 Tests in Asia). Bradman, however, only ever played Tests in Australia and England while Tendulkar has plied his trade on cricket fields the world over.

Advantage: Bradman

Sachin Tendulkar

Indian students hold a large poster of Indian cricketer Sachin Tendulkar after Tendulkar batted for his landmark 100th century. Source: AP

THE EXTERNAL FACTORS

Tendulkar's former coach, Greg Chappell, often expressed his amazement at The Little Master's ability to achieve sustained success over 24 years with the hopes and prayers of a billion people weighing upon his shoulders. Such is the febrile response to any public appearance, Tendulkar is known to remain confined within his Mumbai compound during free time and venture out only in the early hours to drive one of his collection of sports cars.

Bradman, too, carried the aspirations of a nation during a Great Depression the likes of which the world has not seen before or since. The Don lost some of the best years of his career due to his enlistment in the army during World War II. He also held down regular employment as a stockbroker and often ventured to the office before and after a day's play to check the markets.

Advatantage: Even

Don Bradman

Don Bradman walking out to bat at his testimonial match at the MCG in Melbourne in a 1948 photo. Source: HWT Image Library

THE OPPOSITION

Bradman only ever played against four Test opponents - England, South Africa, West Indies and India - over the course of his 52-game career. Of those, 37 were against predominantly strong England sides who, on occasion, were prepared to besmirch the spirit of cricket in their quest for victory. The most notable of these was the Bodyline series of 1932-33, where touring captain Douglas Jardine packed fielders on the leg-side and ordered his pacemen, led by Harold Larwood, to target the bodies of Australian batsmen. Leg theory, as it was known, was specifically introduced to limit Bradman's effectiveness. He averaged 56.57 for the series with one century and three 50s.

Tendulkar has played against nine opponents over the course of his Test career ranging in standard from Australia's all conquering squads under Mark Taylor, Steve Waugh and Ricky Ponting (3,630 runs @ 55.00) to the minnows of Bangladesh (820 @ 136.66) and Zimbabwe (918 @ 76.50). Interestingly, Tendulkar has performed better in away Tests (8705 @ 54.74)  compared with those in India (7132 @ 52.82).

Advantage: Even

THE LONGEVITY

The curtain will be drawn after Tendulkar's record-setting 200th Test next month against the West Indies. That will be a full 32 matches clear of his nearest rivals Ricky Ponting and Steve Waugh, yet it only tells part of the story of Sachin's indefatigable career. Tendulkar also holds the world record for the most number of ODI appearances with 463 (18 more than second-placed Sanath Jayasuriya) and has amassed 307 first class, 551 List A and 96 Twenty20 matches. Not bad for a player confronted with headlines of 'ENDULKAR' after an extended battle with an elbow injury in 2004.

Bradman's international career spanned only four less years than that of Tendulkar, but the similarities end there. A World War, the need to hold down a profession and sporadic international scheduling ensured Bradman would have far fewer opportunities to mark centre and dismantle opposition bowling attacks. He finished his career with 52 Tests and 234 first class matches.

Advantage: Tendulkar

Sachin Tendulkar

Sachin Tendulkar takes his Ferrari for a spin. Source: AP

THE WEALTH

The professional era encourages players to evolve careers into industries. And no one has accomplished the transition more seamlessly than Sachin. Forbes ranks Tendulkar the 51st highest earning athlete in he world this year. He is set to reel in a tidy $22 million in 2013, $4 million from playing contracts/prizemoney and $18 million from endorsements.

Bradman, for his efforts, finished his career with a modest stockbroking portfolio and a quaint red brick house at 2 Holden Street in the Adelaide suburb of Kensington.

Advantage: Tendulkar

Warne, Bradman and Tendulkar

Sir Don Bradman (C) autographs a bat for Indian cricketer Sachin Tendulkar (R) and Shane Warne whilst celebrating his 90th birthday. Picture: Bryan Charlton Source: Supplied

WHAT TENDULKAR SAID OF BRADMAN

"I never believed in comparisons. I respect every individual off the field too and it's not about only Sir Don. I respect them all."

"I think the best compliment was from Sir Don Bradman when he announced his all-time Test XI and I was part of that squad. That would be the best compliment."

WHAT BRADMAN SAID OF TENDULKAR

"I saw him playing on television and was struck by his technique, so I asked my wife to come look at him. Now I never saw myself play, but I felt that this player is playing with a style similar to mine, and she looked at him on television and said, "Yes, there is a similarity between the two...his compactness, technique, stroke production... it all seemed to gel."

HOW THE EXPERTS COMPARE BRADMAN AND TENDULKAR

"It is hard to imagine someone playing Test cricket at the age of 16. That he is still playing ... and is arguably the best batsman in the team is even more remarkable. To think that he has carried the hopes and prayers of more than a billion people each time he bats sets him apart even from Bradman." Greg Chappell

"They will write books and do movies on him in the coming years because he has taken Indian cricket to a new level, and played a big part in winning many series at home and abroad. He is India's most prolific player; the country's Don Bradman." Matthew Hayden

"I am one of those fortunate people who have seen Bradman and Tendulkar bat in my lifetime and in my opinion Tendulkar is the best batsman I have seen in my life." Hanif Mohammed

"(Temdulkar) was unstoppable. I don't think anyone, apart from Don Bradman, is in the same class as Sachin Tendulkar. He is just an amazing player." Shane Warne

"He is the greatest cricketer I have ever seen. I haven't seen Bradman, but he is as close to perfection as you can get. Lara was a great and Ponting too was brilliant, but Sachin, without any hesitation, is the greatest." Sourav Ganguly

“I felt that I was watching a player who comes but once in a century. It can be said that he is the Bradman of our times and I do feel privileged to have played a lot of cricket against him." Steve Waugh

Sachin Tendulkar

Batsman Sachin Tendulkar celebrates hitting yet another double century. Source: AP

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  • Joe Posted at 10:24 AM October 13, 2013

    No Comparison. If Bradman played 200 tests he would have scored about 28000 test runs based on runs scored per test match.

  • fred argent of thailand Posted at 9:25 PM October 12, 2013

    You really can't try to compare them both. Different eras, different conditions, different opposition, different everything. Let it go, they are both champions.

  • timbo Posted at 5:23 PM October 12, 2013

    This is simply a garbage comparison set up for the hype. Firstly, Bradman may have inflated his figures a bit against easy position like India, but the fact remains that he complied an average of 95 in his Tests against England, only marginally below his famous career average. He also did so in conditions that were less favorable to batting than the powder puff protected pitches Tendulkar has played on. The most telling comparison, often used by statistical-minded folks like myself who like to try and determine different player's contributions across different eras, is to assess their production in comparison to others of their time, compare the figures to a mean average for batsmen of the era, and extrapolate from there. Bradman not only played in an era of great pace and spin bowling, but also against some of the finest batsmen the game has seen - Hobbs, Hammond, Suttlciffe, Hedley, etc. Their averages in comparison to his? 40 to 50 runs lower. Do the same for Tendulkar, and his averages basically stand easy comparison to the likes of Ponting, Dravid, Lara and so on - ergo, he is NOT statistically head and shoulders above his great contemporaries in the way Bradman was.

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