Sachin's problem was low sightscreen

Facing criticism over batting slowly on the third day at Mohali, Tendulkar says there were extraneous factors that affected his scoring rate.

Sachin Tendulkar has come in for intense criticism to bat slowly on the third day of the first cricket Test against Pakistan at Mohali on Thursday but the little master himself is inclined to believe that there were extraneous factors that affected his scoring rate.

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Tendulkar, without quite justifying his reasons to bat slow, is of the belief that the low sightscreen at the Mohali stadium was a prime reason for him to slip into a defensive mould on the crucial afternoon of the first Test.

Tendulkar made it a point to mention that the ICC should standardized sightscreen and all international matches must be played under a specific dimension of the sightscreen.

Tendulkar, because of low sightscreen, couldn't pick the ball in the background. His problem was only accentuated after lunch as the stadium started to fill up like it hadn't on the first two days. With so much colour in the background, Tendulkar just couldn't pick the line of the ball.

That's why Tendulkar was coming forward defensively and presenting a straight bat to most of the deliveries.