Mumbai. Legendary batsman Sachin Tendulkar revealed that he used his experience of dealing with reverse swing in international cricket to implement it in the tennis ball tournament ‘Indian Street Premier League (ISPL). The second season of the ISPL was announced here. The second season of the ISPL will be held from January 26 to February 9, 2025 at the Dadoji Kondadev Stadium in Thane, with trials in 55 cities across five regions of the country from October. Six teams will participate in the tournament. Tendulkar hoped that women cricketers will also soon be a part of the tournament, which attracts 30,000 and more spectators to the stadium.
Talking about the league’s special rules like 50-50 and giving nine runs per shot, Tendulkar said, “If we are giving some advantage to the batsmen, then the bowlers should also get a chance to participate in the game.” He said, “During my playing days, I used to tape one side of the ball. In season (leather ball) balls we see shiny and rough side and in tennis ball we used to tape one side and I used to practice reverse swing with it so that I can face it in international cricket.”
He said, “I thought why not include it in this format and if it is implemented then the batsman’s technique will also be tested.” In the case of the red ball, batsmen have to play close to their body when there is swing, while in the case of a taped tennis ball, the situation is completely opposite. Tendulkar said that the bowlers who came through trials and selection were not used to playing with the taped ball but after spending some time, they learned it.
He said, “Probably the bowlers were not used to bowling with a taped ball and reverse swing. The first match I saw, I saw a lot of wide balls being bowled and the bowlers were not able to do it properly. ” Tendulkar said, “The next morning I suggested to Suraj (Suraj Samant, ISPL commissioner) that we have a meeting with all the coaches and I want to tell them how the bowlers should use it to their advantage.
