India's leading batsman Sachin Tendulkar has hit back at critics of his game saying he has had to tame his natural attacking instincts for the good of his team.

Tendulkar returned to action in the third Test against Australia last month after being out for two months with tennis elbow and believes he has matured into more of a team player.

"It's very easy to say that you should go out and play your natural game but sometimes you end up taking plenty of risks." he tells next month's issue of Wisden Cricketer.

"If I kept playing the same way throughout my career, it would mean the opposition have not been using their brains."

Tendulkar, who is just one behind Sunil Gavaskar's world record 34 Test centuries, was especially angered by criticism of his displays during the Asia Cup in July and August when India were beaten by Sri Lanka in the final.

"It's not all about what my natural game is but about executing a team plan. I should be doing what the team wants me to and not what someone sitting 85 yards away in the commentators' box feels," he said.

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His time as captaincy was especially tough, winning just four Tests, drawing 12 and losing nine before being sacked in 2000. Tendulkar blames the pressure and a difficult relationship with the selectors.

"We were not heading in the right direction and it was affecting me as a person," he said. "I couldn't switch off at all. Even 10 days after a match I would still be thinking about why this happened and why that happened.

"Also I felt there was a lack of support from every direction. I wasn't happy with (the selectors) at all. It just didn't work out. They had different ideas. I had different ideas."

Captaining India was a great honour for the 31-year-old, but he has no regrets about having to relinquish the role.