Retired spin legend Shane Warne has hailed Sachin Tendulkar on becoming Test cricket's highest run-getter, saying that a batsman of his class and skill deserved to be on top of the run heap.
"I just think he has a class about him. I just take my hat off to him. It's everything about him. The way he conducts himself on and off the field, the pressure he's under with a billion people watching him every time he goes out to bat, the way he handles decisions, he's pure skill," Warne told British radio broadcaster talkSPORT.
Warne would not forget the beating he got from the Indian master batsman during Australia's tour of India in 1998.
"Bowling to him in the mid-1990s, when I thought I was at my best and I thought a lot of the Australian bowlers were at their best, the way he played quick bowling and spin bowling was just fantastic.
"It was always a challenge to bowl to him. You knew if you bowled well then you would get him out, if you were lucky. If you didn't bowl that well he would smash you all over the park," he added.
{{/usCountry}}"It was always a challenge to bowl to him. You knew if you bowled well then you would get him out, if you were lucky. If you didn't bowl that well he would smash you all over the park," he added.
{{/usCountry}}Warne had also rated Tendulkar ahead of Brian Lara as the best player in his recently released book 'Shane Warne's Century' in which he picked 100 cricketers he had played with or against.
He also said that though Australians were 'outplayed' by India in the second Test at Mohali, they could bounce back.
"Australia just didn't play that well. They are 1-0 down in the series and it will be tough for them. But I'm sure they'll bounce back. I thought India were fantastic. I thought their bowling was outstanding, their batting was good, and their tactics were good. They just generally outplayed Australia," he said.