Little Master warms to his 'home from home'

Sachin Tendulkar has become India's highest Test scorer on the ground that, last Tuesday, he had declared to be his "home from home". He finished on 185 not out and added: "I wanted to score 100 on my own county ground. It was something special. I never managed it for Yorkshire so it was very satisfying to do it in a Test match."

To have a Bombay multi-millionaire, and the world's best batsman, proclaim himself a Yorkie lifted hearts everywhere in the Ridings when Tendulkar took part in the formal opening of the new East Stand earlier in the week. When he arrived as Yorkshire's first overseas professional 10 years ago, he was a shy 19-year-old.

Raised on dry, flat surfaces, in clear air and bright sunlight, he found the green seaming pitches and heavy atmosphere difficult to overcome. He reached 1,000 first-class runs, hit a one-day 100 against Lancashire here and one Championship century at Durham but it was his lesser scores against Malcolm Marshall, Courtney Walsh and Chris Cairns that stay in the memory.

On the Independent's behalf that summer I asked Yorkshire followers of their reactions after a run of low scores. An elderly lady was fiercely defensive: "Don't you knock our Sachin. He's better than any of them big-headed fast bowlers''.

The latter was a dig at Australia's spearhead, Craig McDermott, contracted by Yorkshire. He withdrew ostensibly because of injury, rumoured to be under pressure from the Australian Board.

It was the turn of English bowlers to suffer yesterday, not from pointed comments but sharp strokes. But they were not alone. A spectator in the lower Football Stand tried to catch Sourav Ganguly's first six hit and had to be treated for a bleeding forehead.

Alec Stewart commented: "Full credit to India. They were seeing it like a football in the dark and they'll go for 650. The way we have batted this year should mean we can force a draw. It will be hard work."