Tendulkar has admitted many a times that he wanted to be bowler, not a batsman. Though he went on to become of the greatest batsmen in the history of cricket, he always cherished rolling his arms.
He was not a regular bowler for India but Tendulkar bowled some useful spells for his captains. His 46 Test wickets and 154 ODI scalps prove his effectiveness.
One example of his bowling prowess came to the fore during a Test match at Eden Gardens against Australia in 2001. The said match is famous for the historic 281-run knock by VVS Laxman and his 376-run partnership with Rahul Dravid. Thanks to Laxman and Dravid, India snatched the win from the jaws of defeat after their batting collapsed in the first innings and they were forced to follow on.
Tendulkar failed with the bat in the match. But he made a small but significant contribution with the ball.
Though captain Sourav Ganguly brought him on to change the end for his main bowlers and intended to use him for just one over, Sachin gave him an important wicket of Adam Gilchrist, a dangerous batsman with the ability to change the course of the match in quick time.
Ganguly decided to persist with Sachin and it paid off. Sachin clinched two more wickets, including that of Mathew Hayden and Shane Warne, in the next two overs giving India's march towards victory a big push.
Here is the video of that famous over: