Javed Miandad’s advice to Sachin Tendulkar: retire while on top of your game.

Former Pakistan captain and legendary batsman, Miandad, knows all too well what it feels like when calls for a players’ retirement become louder and louder.

Miandad played his last game in the 1996 World Cup, the Pakistan-India quarter-final, which saw his side lose in Bangalore. He was 39 and in relatively good form but there was a growing sentiment amongst his teammates that he had long passed his prime.

Speaking largely from experience, Miandad offered a few words to Tendulkar.

“I don't want to ask him to retire. Nobody can force him or push him. But if you ask me as a cricketer, he has played enough cricket. Maybe he'll play for another four or six months. This kind of decision is entirely up to the player. It's better to leave cricket when you are wanted, but don't leave when people say thank God he is gone. Great players should leave when they are on top, when they're wanted. People are talking about him all the time; I don't know what to say. My advice to him as a cricketer is that top cricketers should leave when they are on top,” he said in an exclusive interview to ANI.

Miandad, currently in Sri Lanka as a batting consultant for Pakistan, termed the World T20 as wide open, while expressing joy at the resumption of bilateral cricket between India and Pakistan.

“I am very pleased to see India and Pakistan starting their cricket. We don't mind playing cricket in India. It is nice to see these two countries starting their cricket. We like to continue with it. Let’s try and come closer. We should not play once in a while, we should play regularly. It's good for both the countries,” he added.

“I wish both the teams play the T20 final.”