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'I didn't always have the freedom' - Sachin Tendulkar blames BCCI for interfence during his captaincy days

Sachin Tendulkar, whose 24-year international career spanned from November 1989 to November 2013, revealed in a Reddit AMA that the BCCI frequently interfered with his squad selections during his time as India captain. He noted that while leading the team was an honor, he lacked the autonomy to choose his players without external pressure, a constraint he attributed to the less professional nature of the board in the 1990s compared to today.

Tendulkar first took charge of the side on August 10, 1996, at age 23, but was dismissed in 1997 after a 0-2 Test series loss to South Africa. He returned for a second stint in 1998 but eventually stepped down in 2000, leaving with a 16 percent win record in Tests and 31 percent in ODIs.

Despite his own struggles, he named Sourav Ganguly and MS Dhoni as his favorite captains, citing their transformative impact on Indian cricket, and also praised South Africa's Temba Bavuma for his leadership and recent 2-1 Test series victory over Australia.

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