The thought of Sachin Tendulkar donning an Australian jersey feels almost impossible to imagine. For many fans, Australia was the opposition that truly brought out his best—his most memorable Sharjah performances came against them, and it was also the side versus whom he produced his second-highest Test score. So the idea of the Indian legend turning out for any outfit outside India, and especially an Australian team, is hard to process. Still, there were moments when powerful people in Australia genuinely tried to make it happen.
After Tendulkar stepped away from international cricket in November 2013, the Big Bash League franchise Melbourne Stars made a push to tempt him out of retirement for a one-match, exclusive-style arrangement. The proposal, if it had worked, would have placed Tendulkar in the same side as the late Shane Warne, creating a marquee partnership that would have drawn massive attention. Looking back on the early days of the Stars’ setup—and the difficulties of holding on to their biggest names—former chairman Eddie McGuire said he could not think of a more compelling lure than seeing Tendulkar and Warne share the dressing room to fill the ground to capacity.
McGuire explained that his frustration stemmed from the way players were being snapped up, sometimes in situations that did not even guarantee opportunities on the field. He recalled a period when Melbourne Stars were losing talent and, in his view, the league’s movement of players did not always translate into game time.
“I was thinking about the international angle because I was lobbying at times when they started taking all our players,” McGuire said in a clip shared by the Melbourne Stars. “Ridiculously, some were being picked up and not even playing. You’d have to go all the way to Tasmania, sit on the team bus, and then not get a game.”
He then outlined his logic for how the Stars could counterbalance the departures by bringing in a single global superstar—one international presence that could change the entire feel of the franchise.
“I said, ‘If you’re going to take four of my batsmen or four of my bowlers, at least allow me to bring in one international player,’” McGuire added. “And I actually said at one stage, ‘If I can go and get Sachin Tendulkar, I’ll fill this ground five times over.’”
While that sensational plan never became reality, Tendulkar and Warne did eventually cross paths on the field years later. In 2015, both featured together in the Cricket All Stars series, a set of three matches designed to promote the sport and help spread cricket’s appeal in the United States, with several retired players taking part.
Then, in 2020, Tendulkar returned to the spotlight for another Australian event—the Bushfire Cricket Bash—set up to raise funds for victims of the wildfires that affected the country. That appearance marked the first time the world saw him bat in a yellow jersey.
Tendulkar never changed his retirement decision, but McGuire believes he was close to pulling off the deal. He described how the Stars’ ambition was not just to add a star, but to stage an unforgettable one-off moment at the highest possible stage of the competition.
“I said, ‘Just for one game, if we get him to come and play in the grand final. You’ve taken three or four of my best batsmen, so let me bring in one. Let me get Sachin Tendulkar as our batsman and Warnie as our bowler, and let’s see how many people turn up,’” McGuire recalled. “We’d have to put screens out in the park. It would be the biggest cricket match in Australian history, all in one night at a Big Bash T20 game.”
