Among the two, the latter might have most of the cricketing records to his name but to many, Tendulkar will always be the 'Bruce Wayne' to Richards' 'Dark Knight' if both walked out together on the field.
Even at the age of 61, a good 22 years after putting his feet up, Richards has an aura around him, that trademark swagger very much in place. The West Indian, who is now an advisor to Delhi Daredevils, came forth on many aspects of his life and cricket in a freewheeling chat with the TOI on Thursday.
"How do you define aggression?" was a good way to start the conversation, one thought. The answer was simple. "It's just standing at the crease with guys swearing at you, telling you all sorts of things about your parenthood.
If you got good substance, your presence at the crease will be enough. You have got to think you are the man, having your chest and chin up and never taking a backward step. One has to try and exhibit what batsmanship is all about. When you score a 100, it's going to hurt a bowler more than anything else."
That doesn't mean Richards would put down someone like Virat Kohli whose aggro has an overtly vocal tinge to it.
"There are times you have to be confrontational. There are some bullies in cricket and nobody should be allowed to bully anyone. For me, if you confront me, I'll finish the confrontation myself," the former West Indies skipper said.
Noted writer John Birmingham once summed up Richards by saying, "The word genius implies a depth of rational thought and consideration, which was never part of Richards' game.
He was more an intuitive artist blessed with an exceptional gift for violent performance." It's inevitable to draw comparisons when one sees the brute power of another man from the Carribbean Isles — Chris Gayle.
Is there a method to Gayle's madness?
"Gayle realises that being destructive as he is, there is a need to dash all the time. Sometimes he takes time to play his way in and makes up for it later. I am sure Gayle plays the bluff a few times.
While he's there in the middle the fielders are sweating all the time, wondering when he is going to just go. I believe it's like stopping at a traffic light - when it gets to green you have the chance to put the foot on the pedal," he said about the Jamaican.
However, the original 'master blaster' believes that the job of today's batsmen has been made easier with a lack of genuine speedsters around. "Regardless of how good a batsman you are, it's going to be seriously tough to face a genuine quick.
South Africa is a wonderful exponent of that and I doubt batsmen will be able to take liberty against a pace attack like that. They have the best bowling attack at the moment," he said.
VivSpeak
On DD missing Kevin Pietersen
KP brings an air of confidence. He played a huge part in Daredevils' success last year. Small things can disrupt a team but I feel talent wins games while teamwork and intelligence win championships.
On the importance of 'bluffing'
I have always been a big fan of Sehwag over the years and regardless of how big a player you are, you are going to go through times when things don't work to a plan. People expect him to smack everything, so why not take little singles and work the strike around. That is bluffing for me. If you are in the middle, you can always put the foot on the accelerator.
On Sehwag
Sehwag is a magnificent player and he may have lost form for some time. I would always have Sehwag in my team. They (players like Sehwag) may not get going all the time but when they do they can make up for all the losses.
If he batted in T20s...
In this format the best batsmen should play most number of overs. I would have liked to open the batting, but would not take the first ball for sure. I like to take a look from the other end,
His batting philosophy...
Batsmanship is about hitting the gaps. If you can't hit the gaps, clear the boundary!
On Sachin Tendulkar
I am a fan of Sachin. At times people don't appreciate what they have in their midst. He is still not out of place in the modern game. He's still a class act. I'll never dare go say to him you should go tomorrow. He's a modern day hero in a big way. If he wants to go to 50 I'll allow him to go to 50.
On the revival of West Indies cricket
We have great talent in T20 cricket but I doubt West Indies cricket will move forward by only winning the World T20 Championship. There are different formats of the game. The World T20 win gave a boost to the nation's confidence and I hope this is passed on to the longer version.
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