The maestro took the attack to the Australians and smashed the likes of Warne and Fleming around the park, the sandstorm that halted India’s inning for nearly half an hour – could deter Sachin Tendulkar, who was in the form of his life at the time.On April 22, 1998, in the sweltering heat in Sharjah, India were up against it in the Sharjah Cup. Mohammad Azharuddin’s team needed a huge performance to qualify for the final of the tri-series and they were facing a dominant Australian side that had won their three matches in the tournament till then. Things were not made any easier after Australia posted 284/7, with Michael Bevan hitting an unbeaten century. And it was not going to get any easier for India, facing an attack boasting of Shane Warne, Damien Fleming and Michael Kasprowicz.
