Sachin Tendulkar today slammed critics who doubted the Indian team's ability to retain the No 1 world ranking soon after they achieved it more than a year ago and said that the Mahendra Singh Dhoni-led side was still atop the ladder today was proof of the team's calibre.

"Many people thought we would be on top for only 30-40 days when we achieved the no 1 spot in Tests (beating Sri Lanka at home) as the South Africa series (at home) was next. After losing the first Test at Nagpur we heard we will lose the no 1 spot. "But after more than a year we are still standing there. In this competitive era it is fantastic," said Tendulkar at the Castrol Awards function here.