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Tendulkar drive could have killed me: Pakistan umpire
February 24, 2003 19:40 IST
Pakistani umpire Aleem Dar offered a prayer on Monday after he narrowly avoided being smashed on the face by a full-blooded drive from Indian batsman Sachin Tendulkar.
Dar ducked in time but fell to the ground as Tendulkar straight drove Namibia's Bjorn Kotze during yesterday's World Cup group A match at Pietermaritzburg.
The ball whizzed past the umpire's head and raced towards the boundary, one of the many shots Tendulkar hit during his knock of 152.
"I could have been killed," a relieved Dar told AFP on Monday.
"I got saved because of my good eye sight. I still play cricket, you know.
"I have not seen a more powerful drive in my four years of umpiring at the international level," the 34-year-old Dar said.
Dar dismissed any suggestion of holding a grudge against Tendulkar for the narrow escape.
"I actually quite enjoyed the incident," he said. "Sachin was very apologetic about it and kept saying sorry for the next two overs."
Tendulkar said he may have been denied a boundary if the ball had hit the umpire.
"I was looking to hit the ball as hard as possible," he said. "I connected that particular ball and was glad I got four runs for it."
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Number of User Comments: 7
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Sub: missile balls
I think Sachin should start hitting cricket balls into pakistan if there is a war as missiles are becoming quite costly.
Posted by kranthi teja
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Sub: Umpire saved from a Tendulkar stright-drive
The umpire is quoted as saying, "I was saved by my good eyesight." Most unusual for an umpire.
Posted by Gopal
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Sub: Make it mandatory
ICC should make it mandatory for the umpires to wear helmets and other protective gears. Imagine the problems every one would have had if it ...
Posted by Sanjay Khan
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Sub: Are there any standby umpires in WC 2003?
If Umpire Dar was hit and had faced either physical or mental trauma, does ICC have provisions for standby umpires? Given that the game was ...
Posted by Anish V
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Sub: Well Done
Well Done Umpire, the ball Saved you as well Sachin( i mean to say sachin got the boundary). Suggestion: Umpires, Keep your eyes open always ...
Posted by ChandraSekar
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