Sachin will have to earn every run, says Richardson

The West Indies team could not train at the Jadavpur University Campus at Salt Lake, Kolkata, the venue for their three-day practice game against Uttar Pradesh, starting October 31, due to wet ground conditions, but they were undeterred.

Though the players feel privileged to have been invited for Sachin Tendulkar's farewell series, they insist they will not give an inch to the batting icon, saying he will have to earn his runs.

"First of all we want to express our gratitude for inviting us to play a marquee Test series against India. The entire Caribbean team is elated to play the farewell series of Sachin," team operations manager Richie Richardson said on Tuesday.

"We want to make it clear that we have come here with a mission to win the series. We will try our best to stop him from scoring runs. We will not let him an inch. He has to earn every run.

"Winning a series in the sub-continent is a big challenge for every team. It's a big opportunity for the youngsters," he added.

The former captain said the visiting team will give a fitting tribute to Tendulkar after his swansong Test in Mumbai.

"We all have thought about giving a fitting tribute to Tendulkar after his last Test at Wankhede. We don't want to reveal our plans. It will be a big surprise for him," he said.

Richardson recollected the 1992 World Cup in Australia, where he had the first glimpse of Tendulkar.

"He seemed to be a new kid on the block and who could be compared with the greatness of Brian Lara," he said.

But he refused to compare Tendulkar and Lara, saying "We don't want to compare between the two players. Both are great."

Richardson said former India captain Sunil Gavaskar had left a huge impact on the Caribbeans.

"People back in the Caribbean worship Sunil Gavaskar for his fearless cricket. He's always been on top of people's mind. Despite the greatness of Gavaskar, Tendulkar has been able to create a place for himself. That's the biggest achievement of Tendulkar."

The visiting players later did some net practice at the nearby Sourav Ganguly academy.

The practice match, which was originally scheduled to be played in Cuttack, was shifted because of heavy rain in the Odisha town, but there was no respite in Kolkata as well as Saturday's record showers left both the Eden Gardens and JU Campus ground waterlogged.

Even as the conditions look grim, the Cricket Association of Bengal is hopeful that the practice match will not be affected.

The opening Test of the two-match series will be at the Eden Gardens from November 6-10. The visiting team will also play a three-match ODI series.