Tendulkar, Lee back using wax to shine ball

New Delhi, June 9

Advertisement

Indian batting great Sachin Tendulkar and former Australia speedster Brett Lee have backed the idea of using wax as an alternative to saliva to shine the ball.

While cricketers can still use sweat to shine the ball, Tendulkar said players hardly perspired in countries with cooler climates, such as England and New Zealand.

“If you’re not going to allow saliva, and there are places where you don’t sweat, why not use wax or some external substance?” Tendulkar said during his chat with Lee in the 100MB online app.

Teams could be given a “quota” of wax per innings, the former India captain recommended.

Australian cricket-ball manufacturer Kookaburra said last month it had developed a wax applicator to enhance shine and aid swing.

Lee said denying the bowlers an alternative would be “unfair”.

“Maybe try a new substance that they can potentially use that everyone agrees on, that the batsmen are happy with, that the bowlers are happy with,” said Lee, who retired from international cricket in 2012.

“I like the idea of having a tub of wax… it’s a very good idea.” The Australian felt a saliva ban would be tough to police and match officials should be lenient.

“There has to be a lot of leniency, maybe 2-3 warnings per player because I can guarantee you, if the players are told they can’t do it, they won’t do it on purpose but I think it will happen through natural instinct,” he added.

Tendulkar also suggested the use of second new ball in Tests after every 50-55 overs to aid fast bowlers on unresponsive pitches.

“In Test cricket, suddenly if the surfaces are not good, the standard of playing I feel drops down. And above all the game slows down because, the batters knows if I don’t play a stupid shot here, no one can get me out and the bowler knows, on this surface I have to be patient,” Tendulkar said.

“But why not then to get the game moving, have a new ball after every 45-50 or 55 overs because in ODI cricket we have to play only 50 overs, and you have two new balls there, so literally 25 overs, so that’s it,” he said. Agencies