The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) has been left shocked after it discovered that off-spinner Monty Panesar has been helping Indian batting maestro Sachin Tendulkar to prepare for the Test series, which begins today at Lord’s.
Panesar had a long bowl to Tendulkar in the nets at Lord’s last week. The private session was not arranged by ECB or Panesar’s county Sussex.
“If Monty did have a session in the nets with Sachin Tendulkar, it wasn’t arranged by us and we weren’t aware of it. It must have been something he arranged privately through his own contacts,” the Sun quoted an ECB spokesman, as saying.
Panesar reportedly drove from his home in Brighton to Lord’s on July 10 to bowl at Tendulkar in the indoor nets.
Meanwhile, Sussex cricket director Mark Robinson said: “It was something arranged between themselves. Monty told me about it the next day.”
“It was good for Monty - you must learn a lot bowling to someone like Tendulkar. It would have given him a boost. I don’t think it is a problem for England - after all, they don’t have a left-arm spinner likely to play in the series,” he added.