Vinod Kambli is the only person who could upset Sachin Tendulkar: Sanjay Manjrekar

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Former India cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar has revealed Vinod Kambli was the only person who could upset Sachin Tendulkar with his words.

The enduring friendship between Vinod Kambli and Sachin Tendulkar is legendary in Indian cricket, a bond forged on the cricket fields of Mumbai when they were just 10 years old.

Over the years, they shared many unforgettable moments, including their historic 664-run partnership in the 1988 Harris Shield match. However, their camaraderie was not without its share of friction, as Kambli had a knack for ruffling Tendulkar's feathers, especially during their time together in the Indian cricket team.

In the 1992 Cricket World Cup, Kambli, known for his animated personality, found himself frustrated early in the tournament as he was benched for the initial matches. Sanjay Manjrekar, a teammate, recalled how Kambli frequently targeted Tendulkar with his criticisms.

"His mood was off; he was a bit upset. Sachin and I were the two established players so we were getting all the matches. But after every match, when we would meet, he would come after us. He would criticise; 'What is this batting? You could have played faster'. He didn't even spare Sachin," Manjrekar said in a chat with Sportskeeda.

Manjrekar also added that despite winning a match against Zimbabwe, Kambli came to Tendulkar and criticized him for not ending the match early.

"He told Sachin, 'John Traicos is such an ordinary bowler. You could have hit him out of the ground; you were taking singles'. Sachin said 'our target was to win the match'. But Vinod did not learn. If there is one person who could upset Sachin, that is Vinod Kambli," he continued.

The boiling point came when Kambli finally got his chance in the match against Pakistan, where he scored a modest 24 runs off 41 balls.

"So after the match, we took Vinod in a corner and said 'What happened? You hit such big sixes in the nets. What happened during the match?' Then he says 'they were bowling very tight'. That was his simple explanation. So yeah, he was quite the character," Manjrekar concluded.

The duo's friendship faced a more significant test years later when Kambli publicly accused Tendulkar of not supporting him during tough times. This led to a three-year silence between the two, with Tendulkar omitting Kambli from his retirement speech and post-retirement celebrations in 2013. However, the pair eventually reconciled and were seen together at the inauguration of their coach Ramakant Achrekar's memorial in Mumbai.