Tendulkar, who retired from cricket last year having become the first man to score 100 international centuries and been India's leading run-scorer during their march to the 2011 World Cup title, was among the sceptics when it came to assessing England's chances. "I think Australia, South Africa, New Zealand are a dark horse, and India -- these four should be my semi-finalists," Tendulkar said at a press conference at London's Lord's Cricket Ground on Friday, where he was promoting his autobiography, 'Playing It My Way'. "Do England have a chance? Not really. I don't think so. Anything is possible in this sport but going on current form I don't think England will be that competitive. I feel India can surprise a lot of people and I also believe the spinners will come into play.
People talk about the pitches for fast bowlers but because of the size of the grounds, I think spinners could be important."
India have long proved tough to beat in home conditions but have often struggled on their travels, particularly in recent times, and were beaten 3-1 in a five-Test series in England earlier this year. Tendulkar said he thought increased exposure to English conditions would benefit Indian players, citing his own experience as a 19-year-old when he became Yorkshire's first overseas cricketer in 1992.
"I grew up watching cricket being played in England and the reason I wanted to start playing cricket was because of the 1983 World Cup (that India won in England)," the 41-year-old Tendulkar said. "My first Test 100 also took place in England at Old Trafford, which was a big moment for me. And in 1992, the first time I played for Yorkshire was a turning point in my career because it taught me about the conditions but it also taught me a lot as a person. I thoroughly enjoyed my time at Yorkshire -- they were all very supportive and welcoming and I can never forget that experience, the warmth I felt there. England will always have a special place in my heart and my mother-in-law is English, so I have to be careful what I say about England!," added Tendulkar.
After the end of India's recent tour of England, top-order batsman Cheteshwar Pujara had a brief stint with Midlands county Derbyshire. But Tendulkar said playing more in England would benefit India's bowlers too as he recalled the experience of left-arm paceman Zaheer Khan, who took 78 wickets for Worcestershire in 2006. "I remember Zaheer Khan was having a lot of injuries and there was a period when he was away from cricket for a while," said Tendulkar.
"I told him there was no off-season for him -- when the monsoons are in India, he needed to go to England and he would be transformed as a cricketer. He did that, played a couple of seasons in English county cricket and I think that transformed him as a bowler."
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