Snaring the Little Master is Pakistan's priority

World Cup Betting / Frank Gregan / 28 March 2011 /

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A sight Pakistan hope they see early in Wednesday's semi-final - Sachin Tendulkar leaving the pitch

"It seems almost criminal that arguably the greatest player of his generation is still struggling to break his World Cup duck."

The odds suggest India will emerge triumphant from Wednesday's semi-final against Pakistan but the pressure will be intense on MS Dhoni's men with the spotlight falling on one man in particular

Listening to the India/Australia quarter-final last week it was apparent that at least two of the commentators were not very impressed with the way the tournament has been scheduled. One pundit suggested that the organising committee has done all that it could to ensure India will be crowned champions save for instructing the engraver to put their name on the trophy!

The smell of sour grapes drifted over the airwaves. Granted the schedule has not been kind to New Zealand who had to travel 4,000 miles after their win against South Africa in Bangladesh on Friday to reach Colombo, the venue for their semi-final against Sri Lanka which gets under way on Tuesday.

India have been given an extra rest before playing their semi final against Pakistan but it's swings and roundabouts, it only means that should they reach the final they will have a day less to prepare than their opponents. There's also a train of thought that India's track record in the competition proves they need a little bit of help. Two final appearances have resulted in only one win, back in 1983 when they defeated England.

The Little Master, Sachin Tendulkar, was only 10 years old at the time. Sadly since then he may have collected more records than Abba but his trophy cupboard is pretty bare. Indeed, it seems almost criminal that arguably the greatest player of his generation is still struggling to break his World Cup duck.

He'll be pleased with his performance in the tournament so far. He is averaging 54 with only two batsmen (Jonathan Trott and Tillakaratne Dilshan) having scored more runs. Despite the whinging about all the conditions being in India's favour, his team have been given the toughest of routes through to the final after they qualified in second place from Group B.

Their victory against Australia was massive, the four times world champions' dominance this century ended when the Indians chased down 261 after having lost a very important toss. That win has set up the match that everyone has been wanting to see, a semi-final against their old foe Pakistan who had a much simpler task in the quarter-final when pitted against the toothless Windies.

There is a wealth of talent in the Indian side but the one player that the Pakistanis will be targeting ahead of everyone else is Tendulkar. Getting the Little Master cheaply would give them a huge psychological boost and deflate the Indian camp.

Tendulkar is a living legend in India but all the stats, all the records and all the accolades count for nothing this week. It's all about the here and now and being able to deliver under the greatest pressure imaginable. It may only be limited over cricket but given the pathological level of support and expectation, the Pakistan game and the final should his team prevail could be the two most important games of Tendulkar's life.

India head the market, they are currently [2.66] to lift the trophy with Sr Lanka at [2.82], Pakistan [5.5] and the Kiwis [11.0]. A couple of decent innings from the Little Master should see him add another honour to his collection as the tournament's top batsman. Odds of [3.95] are available if you think he'll be able to produce his best in the coming week's white hot atmosphere.

Tendulkar is one of the world's finest sportsmen, a highly talented individual who has always conducted himself in an exemplary manner. The vast majority of cricket fans have great admiration for him and given the unsavoury events that Pakistan were involved in last summer most neutrals will be willing him and his team to come good on Wednesday.

Pakistan and their supporters will not be concerned about any of that. They've been through the mill lately and nothing would give them greater satisfaction than knocking out the Indians and going on to win the trophy. This is going to be a fantastic week of cricket and maybe, just maybe, the Little Master's trophy cabinet will no longer be bare at the end of it!

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