How Melbourne Stars tried to sign Sachin Tendulkar for a one-off Big Bash game
Sachin Tendulkar in the Big Bash with Shane Warne? Melbourne Stars once dreamed of pulling off the wildest signing in Australian cricket history, a one-night spectacle that could have packed the park.
Former Melbourne Stars chairman Eddie McGuire has revealed the franchise once explored the possibility of bringing Sachin Tendulkar out of retirement for a one-off Big Bash appearance in what could have become one of the most extraordinary spectacles in Australian cricket history.
Speaking on the Melbourne Stars’ official podcast, McGuire recounted how the idea emerged during a period when franchises were losing key domestic players, leaving teams scrambling for alternatives.
McGuire said he had been lobbying officials over what he believed was an unfair system, where teams would lose multiple players but receive little flexibility in return.
“I was just thinking about the international angle because I was lobbying at times when they started taking all our players,” McGuire said.
“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.”
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THE BLOCKBUSTER PLAN
Frustrated by the situation, McGuire proposed a blockbuster solution.
“I said to him, ‘Well, 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,’” he said.
That is when the idea of bringing Tendulkar into the Big Bash surfaced.
“And I actually said at one stage, ‘If I can go and get Sachin Tendulkar, I’ll fill this ground five times over.’”
McGuire said the dream scenario involved pairing the Indian batting icon with late Australian spin legend Shane Warne for a one-off Big Bash final appearance.
“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.”
CHANGING TIMES
While the move never materialised, Indian players have slowly begun appearing in overseas franchise leagues in recent years. Ravichandran Ashwin had signed up to play for Sydney Thunder in the 2025-26 Big Bash League season, only to withdraw due to injury before the campaign began.
Former India Under-19 World Cup-winning captain Unmukt Chand remains the only Indian-born cricketer to feature in the Big Bash, having represented the Melbourne Renegades in the 2021-22 season after switching allegiance to the United States.
WHY IT FAILED
At the time McGuire floated the Tendulkar idea, access to Indian players remained highly restricted, making such a move virtually impossible despite the former India captain having already retired from international cricket.
Even so, the mere prospect of Tendulkar turning out in Melbourne Stars colours alongside Shane Warne remains one of franchise cricket’s great what-ifs, a crossover spectacle that could have transformed the early years of the Big Bash.
Former Melbourne Stars chairman Eddie McGuire has revealed the franchise once explored the possibility of bringing Sachin Tendulkar out of retirement for a one-off Big Bash appearance in what could have become one of the most extraordinary spectacles in Australian cricket history.
Speaking on the Melbourne Stars’ official podcast, McGuire recounted how the idea emerged during a period when franchises were losing key domestic players, leaving teams scrambling for alternatives.
McGuire said he had been lobbying officials over what he believed was an unfair system, where teams would lose multiple players but receive little flexibility in return.
“I was just thinking about the international angle because I was lobbying at times when they started taking all our players,” McGuire said.
“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.”
WATCH THE VIDEO
THE BLOCKBUSTER PLAN
Frustrated by the situation, McGuire proposed a blockbuster solution.
“I said to him, ‘Well, 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,’” he said.
That is when the idea of bringing Tendulkar into the Big Bash surfaced.
“And I actually said at one stage, ‘If I can go and get Sachin Tendulkar, I’ll fill this ground five times over.’”
McGuire said the dream scenario involved pairing the Indian batting icon with late Australian spin legend Shane Warne for a one-off Big Bash final appearance.
“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.”
CHANGING TIMES
While the move never materialised, Indian players have slowly begun appearing in overseas franchise leagues in recent years. Ravichandran Ashwin had signed up to play for Sydney Thunder in the 2025-26 Big Bash League season, only to withdraw due to injury before the campaign began.
Former India Under-19 World Cup-winning captain Unmukt Chand remains the only Indian-born cricketer to feature in the Big Bash, having represented the Melbourne Renegades in the 2021-22 season after switching allegiance to the United States.
WHY IT FAILED
At the time McGuire floated the Tendulkar idea, access to Indian players remained highly restricted, making such a move virtually impossible despite the former India captain having already retired from international cricket.
Even so, the mere prospect of Tendulkar turning out in Melbourne Stars colours alongside Shane Warne remains one of franchise cricket’s great what-ifs, a crossover spectacle that could have transformed the early years of the Big Bash.
