Sachin SOS for lighter bats

Sachin Tendulkar has SOS-ed an old clubmate for an additional complement of "seasoned' lighter bats for the World Cup.

Tendulkar usually carries a quiver of 8-10 bats in his "coffin". That is enough to last the joust on hand. But there are occasions when he places an indent for more bats. This is one of those. Since the bats cannot be stroked in a hurry on tour, they are rendered ready to use and sent to him.

The call for ready-to-use lighter bats was received (and complied with) by Satish Samant, coach of Mumbai's under-17 team, who also has the distinction of having made 310 runs in a 45-over match. Samant seasoned the bats along with Atul Ranade, Sachin's childhood pal.

Four new lightweight bats have already been dispatched to Tendulkar, and a couple of more bats will be rushed once they are 'stroked' by Ranade and Samant, a colleague of Sachin's brother, Ajit, at Air-India. The Tendulkars and Samant are all members of the same club.

Tendulkar's SOS for lighter bats has set cricket circles abuzz because Tendulkar is renowned for his heavy English Willows. But informed sources say he began using bats of slightly lesser weight on the New Zealand tour on the advice of doctors concerned about his back problem.

Why the lighter bats for South Africa? Because the pitches are fast and Tendulkar will need them to play horizontal bat shots. The difference in weight, though, is imperceptible. The bats Tendulkar used earlier weighed 1,300 grams. The new bats weigh 50 grams less.

In the heavy bats he used earlier, the bottom is thicker because it helps strokeplay on low-bounce tracks. In the lighter bats, the "meat" is thicker to budget in the extra bounce and pace.