Sachin India's proudest possession- Peter Roebuck

Sachin Tendulkar has been playing top-class cricket for 20 years and he's still producing blistering innings, still looking hungry, still demolishing attacks, still a prized wicket, still a proud competitor. He has not merely been around for two decades. From his first outing to his most recent effort, a stunning 175 in Hyderabad, he has been a great batsman. Longevity counts amongst his strengths. Twenty years! It's a heck of a long time, and it's gone in the blink of an eye.

The Berlin Wall was taken down a week before Sachin Tendulka first wore the colours of his country, Nelson Mandela was behind bars, Allan Border was captaining Australia, and India was a patronised country known for its dust, poverty, timid batsmen and not much else. In those days Tendulkar was a tousle-haired cherub prepared to stand his ground against all comers, including Wasim Akram and the most menacing of the Australans, Merv Hughes. Now he is a tousle-haired elder still standing firm, still driving and cutting, still retaining some of the impudence of youth, but nowadays bearing also the sagacity of age.

It has been an incredible journey, a trip that figures alone cannot define. Not that the statistics lack weight. To the contrary they are astonishing, almost mind-boggling. Tendulkar has a scored an avalanche of runs, thousands upon thousands of them in every form of the game. He has reached three figures 87 times in the colours of his country, and all the while has somehow retained his freshness, somehow avoided the mechanical, the repetitive and the predictable.

Perhaps that has been part of it, the ability to retain the precious gift of youth. Alongside Shane Warne, the Indian master has been the most satisfying cricketer of his generation.

Tendulkar's feats are prodigious. He has scored as many runs overseas as in his backyard, has flogged Brett Lee at his fastest and Shane Warne at his most obtuse, has flourished against swing and cut, prospered in damp and dry. Nor can his record be taken for granted. Batsmen exist primarily to score runs. It is a damnably difficult task made to look easy by a handful of expert practitioners. Others have promised and fallen back, undone by the demands, unable to meet the moment. Tendulkar has kept going, on his toes, seeking runs in his twinkling way.

In part he has lasted so long because there has been so little inner strain. It's hard to think of a player remotely comparable who has spent so little energy conquering himself. Throughout, Tendulkar has been able to concentrate on overcoming his opponents.

But it has not only been about runs. Along the way Tendulkar has provided an unsurpassed blend of the sublime and the precise. In him the technical and the natural sit side by side, friends not enemies, allies deep in conversation. Romantics talk about those early morning trips to Shivaji Park, and the child eager to erect the nets and anxious to bat till someone took his wicket. They want to believe that toil alone can produce that straight drive and a bat so broad that periodically it is measured. But it was not like that.

From the start the lad had an uncanny way of executing his strokes perfectly. His boyhood coaches insist that their role was to ensure that he remained unspoilt. There was no apprenticeship. Tendulkar was born to bat.

Over the decades it has been Tendulkar's rare combination of mastery and boldness that has delighted connoisseurs and crowds alike. More than any other batsman, even Brian Lara, Tendulkar's batting has provoked gasps of admiration. A single withering drive dispatched along the ground, eluding the bowler, placed unerringly between fieldsmen, can provoke wonder even amongst the oldest hands. A solitary square cut is enough to make a spectator's day.

Tendulkar might lose his wicket cheaply but he is incapable of playing an ugly stroke. His defence might have been designed by Christopher Wren. And alongside these muscular orthodoxies could be found ornate flicks through the on-side, glides off his bulky pads that sent tight deliveries dashing on unexpected journeys into the back and beyond. Viv Richards could terrorise an attack with pitiless brutality, Lara could dissect bowlers with surgical and magical strokes, Tendulkar can take an attack apart with towering simplicity.

Nor has Tendulkar ever stooped to dullness or cynicism. Throughout, his wits have remained sharp and originality has been given its due. He has, too, been remarkably constant. In those early appearances, he relished the little improvisations calculated to send bowlers to the madhouse: cheeky strokes that told of ability and nerve. For a time thereafter he put them into the cupboard, not because respectability beckoned or responsibility weighed him down but because they were not required. Shot selection, his very sense of the game, counts amongst his qualities.

On his most recent trip to Australia, though, he decided to restore audacity, cheekily undercutting lifters, directing the ball between fieldsmen, shots the bowlers regarded as beyond the pale. Even in middle age he remains unbroken. Hyderabad confirmed his durability.

And yet, even this, the runs, the majesty, the thrills, does not capture his achievement. Reflect upon his circumstances and then marvel at his feat. Here is a man obliged to put on disguises so that he can move around the streets, a fellow able to drive his cars only in the dead of night for fear or creating a commotion, a father forced to take his family to Iceland on holiday, a person whose entire adult life has been lived in the eye of a storm. Throughout he has been public property, India's proudest possession, a young man and yet also a source of joy for millions, a sportsman and yet, too, an expression of a vast and ever-changing nation. Somehow he has managed to keep the world in its rightful place. Somehow he has raised children who relish his company and tease him about his batting. Whenever he loses his wicket in the 90s, a not uncommon occurrence, his boy asks why he does not "hit a sixer".

Somehow he has emerged with an almost untarnished reputation. Inevitably mistakes have been made. Something about a car, something else about a cricket ball, and suggestions that he had stretched the facts to assist his pal Harbhajan Singh. But then he is no secular saint. It's enough that he is expected to bat better than anyone else. It's hardly fair to ask him to match Mother Teresa as well.

At times India has sprung too quickly to his defence, as if a point made against him was an insult to the nation, as if he were beyond censure. A poor lbw decision- and he has had his allocation- can all too easily be turned into a cause celebre. Happily Tendulkar has always retained his equanimity. He is a sportsman as well as a cricketer. By no means has it been the least of his contributions, and it explains his widespread popularity. Not even Placido Domingo has been given more standing ovations.

And there has been another quality that has sustained him, a trait whose importance cannot be overstated. Not long ago Keith Richards, lead guitarist with the Rolling Stones, was asked how the band had kept going for so long, spent so many decades on the road, made so many records, put up with so much attention. His reply was as simple as it as telling. "We love it," he explained, "we just love playing." And so it has always has been with Tendulkar. It's never been hard for him to play cricket. The hard part will be stopping. But he will take into retirement a mighty record and the knowledge that he has given enormous pleasure to followers of the game wherever it is played.

The Sachin I know - By Harsha Bhogle

Sachin Tendulkar may have inspired others to write poetry but he batted in robust prose. Not for him the tenderness and fragility of the poet, the excitement of a leaf fluttering in a gentle breeze. No. Tendulkar is about a plantation standing up to the typhoon, the skyscraper that stands tall, the cannon that booms. Solid. Robust. Focused. The last word is the key. He loves the game deeply but without the eccentricities of the romantic. There is a match to be won at all times.

But Tendulkar too was a sapling once. And his brother Ajit sheltered him from the gale, kept him focused. Sachin looked after his cricket, Ajit looked after Sachin. Twenty-two years ago, I was asked by Sportsworld to do an article on this extraordinary schoolboy. It wasn't Sachin I had to speak to, it was Ajit. When the time for the interview came, at Ramakant Achrekar's net in Shivaji Park, Ajit was there with a cyclostyled copy of Sachin's scores. And Achrekar admonished me for spoiling his child, for fear that Sachin would get distracted.

The interview was done. Sachin was neither overwhelmed nor garrulous; indeed he was so limited with his words that you had to hold on to every one of them. It was sent to Sportsworld in Calcutta by courier (or was it just put into a normal post box?) and then came a request for two photographs. Again it was Ajit who produced them. When I got the cheque, I noticed they had paid me an extra 100 rupees for the photographs. They weren't mine but Sportsworld had a policy of paying for them and so I wrote out a cheque to Ajit for Rs 100. It was acknowledged and accepted gratefully. We lived in different times then!

It was also my first realisation that young men in the public eye needed to be sheltered so they could focus on playing cricket; that they needed an elder brother, or an equivalent, to put a gentle hand on the shoulder and, occasionally, lay one the back side. A lot of other young men today see Tendulkar's runs, eye his wealth, but their brattishness comes in the way of noticing his work ethic. For Tendulkar's life is not the story of extraordinary ability but of an extraordinary work ethic.

Twelve years later, on a cold evening in Bristol, preparing for a World Cup game against Kenya the next day, I saw him in dark glasses, fiddling around with his kit. Aimlessly, like he was searching for something to do. At most times he would be bounding around with energy, bowling off 18 yards, taking catches, shouting thoughts to other batsmen.

I approached him hesitantly, I couldn't see his eyes because they were shrouded by these huge dark glasses, probably the only time they were used to cover rather than to adorn, for he had just lost his father. I asked him if he would talk to us about coming back to play. He nodded his head and only briefly took the glasses off. His eyes were red and swollen; you could see he had been crying copiously. For the interview he put them on, and once the camera had stopped rolling, admitted he didn't want to return, that his mind was all over the place, that he felt anchorless. It was the only time he didn't want to play for India but he had been forced back by his family, aware that only cricket could help him overcome his grief. When he got a hundred the next day and looked heavenwards, some other eyes were moist. Even in his grief there was resolve, for he wanted that century. It might only have been Kenya but he was battling himself, not the bowlers.




It has been fantastic having a ringside view of this journey, watching a cricketer, and a person, grow. But one thing hasn't changed. He still approaches every game like a child would a bar of chocolate, feeling happy and fortunate




Four years later he agreed to do an interview for a series of programmes I was then doing. Our producer thought we would make it special, and to our surprise and joy, Amitabh Bachchan agreed to introduce the programme. In the first break Sachin whispered, "That was a beautiful surprise." Little did he know there was more to come.

Sometime earlier he had told me he was a big fan of Mark Knopfler and we thought it would be great if we could get the great Dire Straits man to talk to us.

"I'm recording all night but immediately after that, before I fall asleep," Knopfler said, and somehow we persuaded Sachin to do the programme in the afternoon rather than in the morning. And when the moment came, we patched the line on and when I said, "Hello Mark," Sachin looked puzzled. A minute later his eyes lit up when he realised which Mark we had on the line. And then he was like a child, tongue-tied, fidgety, excited - much like most people are when they first meet Tendulkar. Even the stars can get starry-eyed!

And there have been moments of surprising candour. When asked, as batsmen tend to be, which bowlers had troubled him the most, he smiled an almost embarrassed smile and said, "You won't believe this." When probed, he said, "Pedro Collins and Hansie Cronje."

"In fact," he said, "I once told my partner 'Will you please take Hansie for me? I don't mind playing Allan Donald'"

Tendulkar's batting has been much chronicled over the years. Indeed, I believe he has been the most analysed cricketer in the history of the game. Yet he has found the urge, and indeed the solutions, to play on for 20 years. Now that is a landmark to be celebrated, not the many inconsequential others that we exploit for our own need. It has been fantastic having a ringside view of this journey, watching a cricketer, and a person, grow. But one thing hasn't changed. He still approaches every game like a child would a bar of chocolate, feeling happy and fortunate.

The Buzz Of Greatness [Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar]

Jan 04, 1999

Bringing another old Article , But a Great One!! I think many would have missed this article with superb predictions made 10 years ago and almost all are True today!!



The Buzz Of Greatness



It was Said at that time--->>He may not yet be the greatest batsman, but he can wield a nation on his willow.





And No Wonder , Today He is GOD OF CRICKET!!



Much before he commences strapping on his armour, a nation begins to prepare. Across the land in dispirited homes and listless offices, a strange frisson starts to course. The frisson has a hormonal edge, a near sexual charge. In pulsating minutes a sublime duet will be set in motion, it will play between the puissant boy- emperor and his loyal subjects. Soon the boy and his people will be locked in an intense jugalbandi, his every movement of preparation finding its echo in a million eyes scanning time dials, in a million feet beginning to fidget. When he shrugs his shoulders to loosen his cervical knots, a million backs will stretch in preparation for the combat. As he wraps on his elbow-guard, as he flattens his curls with a meshed helmet, his subjects, scattered over the different time- zones of his vast domains, will ready themselves in different ways, simmering tea, pouring whisky, and finally falling prostrate before the TV.

Brilliant men will take pause; important men will take pause. In tribute to one man’s magic, even the traffic will thin. In both statistics and soul, Sachin Tendulkar is not yet the greatest batsman to play the game, and he may well never be— the Don providing the one full stop in a game littered with question marks. He is perhaps not even the greatest Indian batsman to play the game— Sunny was a warrior of the highest rank, without fear, his talent forged in steel, and it does us no credit to dethrone him so readily.






However, all this is contingent on the "not yet". For Sachin is only 25, and what he is already, is indisputably great. (Comparisons with the Don and Sunny have to be seen in context of the pressure he plays under. The media glare is unremitting, the burden of expectation limitless, and the pace blistering. In their entire international careers the Don played on 10 different grounds, Sunny on 55: Sachin has already weathered 80 different arenas.) In time, he will be greater. In time he will create a mountain of statistics so high its crest will not even be visible to ordinary players. In time he will be knighted. And perhaps in time Sir Sachin will be greater than Sir Sunil, Sir Vivian, and who knows in some arcane reckoning even Sir Donald.

What he already has perhaps in more abundance than any other batsman in history is a certain buzz. It is what marks out the greatest sports legends. Muhammad Ali did not have the greatest win- loss record, but he had the buzz of greatness from the first moment he stepped into the ring to take on Sonny Liston; Michael Jordan has never scored 100 points in a game like Wilt the Stilt but he’s carried the buzz from the day he set foot into the NBA ; Pele had it as a 17- year- old. Sachin had it at 13, as a soft- skinned schoolboy; at 16 when he made his international debut he made it as a star.



What is this buzz?

It is the X factor. It is where the analysis stops and the awe begins. It is the sense of a whole far greater than its discernible parts. It is Joyce without a dictionary. It is the outer frontiers of human ability and endeavour where ordinary humans can never hope to roam. It is the supreme admiration across which no envy casts its shadow. It is the promise of the impossible. It is god-head without religion.

It is this buzz that Sachin has, this lurking knowledge that he can do anything on a cricket field, that he can change the rules of the game with his bat— and occasionally ball— which brings the spectators to the stadiums.
And also the connoisseurs, the experts, the players. The stories are legion of top international players stopping everything they are doing to watch this boy (man?) bat. Even the Don has nodded from his lofty perch. Six months ago, late one night there was a call from Wiltshire, England. It was the great writer Sir Vidiadhar, V. S. Naipaul, on the line. He had heard about Sachin’s back- to- back centuries at Sharjah, the first struck in a swirling storm. He had heard the boy bats like Bradman. Was it possible to obtain a videotape, on returnable basis, of those two knocks? The buzz spreads everywhere, and affect





It is to Sachin’s enduring credit that in 1998 he finally came to terms with his talent, his billing, and his place in the history of the game. The flicker of doubt that often shadowed his face vanished for good. For the first time the knowledge of who he is could be seen shining grimly in his eyes.

A batsman doesn’t become Bradman or Gavaskar because he has unique potential; he does because he goes out everyday and ravages bowlers, and refuses to give them his wicket. In 1998 Sachin finally learnt to play by his own yardstick; not for transitory fame, but for permanent glory.
In this, his annus mirabilis, the instinctive plunderer seemed to have learnt that the status he needs to seek is not that of a marauding Mongol but that of a grand Moghul, capable of both conquest and consolidation.



Goes Past Sunny!

Through the year there was a growing feeling that the prodigy had finally come into his real groove, found his true metier. Today it can be safely wagered that Sachin will end up going places no one has gone before.



No 1 In ODI's!!



In the one- day game, he could well end up becoming the definitive batsman, just as the Don is in Test cricket. In Tests, he will make more runs than Allan Border, hit more centuries than Sunny, and yes, make not one double century, but several, and for good measure perhaps reel off even a triple.

This is not idiot fantasy, but a fair measure of the man’s worth and determination— finally in luminous evidence this year.



Becomes Highest Test Run Getter!



Above all he will continue to pack in the viewers as no batsman has in recent times. He has given us our most stirring moments in a generally gloomy year. And yet he can somehow make us soar beyond crass nationalism. Very often we don’t mind if India loses as long as we can see him conjure up one of his glorious displays of batting. Let him get out cheaply and hordes of us lose interest.

Ajay Jadeja once said presciently that his grandchildren would not ask him about his performances but what it was like to play with Sachin Tendulkar.

Indians are fortunate that the defining player of the era is one of them; and that he carries himself with a character and dignity first given rare contours by Sunny.

Indians are lucky that a short, gifted man can, with a few swishes of his wand, take away the cares and drudgery of their lives and transport them to a 22- yard pleasure palace where the onslaught of disease and the price of onions is for fleeting hours no more real than a distant mirage.

14 Aug 1990 - Sachin scores his first international 100

Ind v Eng, Manchester, Old Trafford
10-14 Aug , 1990

Match report
Toss: England. Test debuts: India - A.Kumble.

Of the six individual centuries scored in this fascinating contest, none was more outstanding than Tendulkar's, which rescued India on the final afternoon. At 17 years and 112 days, he was only 30 days older than Mushtaq Mohammad was when, against India at Delhi in 1960-61, he became the youngest player to score a Test hundred, More significantly, after several of his colleagues had fallen to reckless strokes, Tendulkar held the England attack at bay with a disciplined display of immense maturity.

India were placed on the defensive once Gooch chose to bat first. The Old Trafford groundsman, Peter Marron, wrong-footed by a cold change in the weather after watering, had predicted even bounce but little pace, and England quickly grasped the opportunity. Leading an unchanged side, Gooch put on 73 untroubled runs with Atherton in the first hour, and India soon resorted to their leg-spinners, Hirwani and Kumble, the latter replacing seamer Sharma from the team at Lord's. They slowed down England's progress, but could do little to prevent a 225-run opening partnership, which overtook by 21 runs the record Gooch and Atherton had set at Lord's a fortnight earlier. In scoring 116, Gooch became the first English batsman for nineteen years to record centuries in three successive Test innings, but on the day he was eclipsed by his junior partner. In five and a half hours, Atherton carefully constructed 131, exactly matching the feat of G. Pullar, the only other Lancastrian to score a Test century for England at Old Trafford, against India 31 years earlier. Smith batted for just over four hours, passing his century during a last-wicket partnership of 60 with Malcolm, an unexpectedly supportive ally, as England reached 519.

The loss of three quick wickets for 57 to the seam movement of Fraser, in the final hour of the second day, placed India in immediate peril. On Saturday, however, they were rescued in style by their captain, Azharuddin, and Manjrekar, whose fourth-wicket stand of 189 set the pace for an entertaining day's play in which 355 runs were scored. Manjrekar made 93 in three and three-quarter hours before falling to a bat-pad catch at silly point off the tireless Hemmings, but Azharuddin could not be stopped so easily. In a breathtaking 281-minute stay for 179, he hit 21 fours and a six, and between lunch and tea he became the first player to score 100 runs for India in a Test session. After he had miscued a drive off Fraser to Atherton, the second new ball accounted for most of the remaining Indian batting, although Tendulkar, after taking 54 minutes to get off the mark, gave warning of his talents in scoring 68 from 136 balls to reduce the England lead to just 87.

As England's second innings began on the fourth morning, Gooch suffered a rare failure in a rich summer, departing for 7. But Atherton added a further 74 to his first-innings hundred, and a winning position was achieved through the efforts of Lamb. Earlier in the game he had looked out of his depth against the Indian spinners, but, relishing the challenge, he hit Hirwani for two successive sixes early on, and his 109 from 141 balls, followed by Smith's unbeaten 61, allowed Gooch to declare 25 minutes into the final day.

To win and square the series, India were offered a minimum of 88 overs in which to score 408, 2 runs more than their own record for the highest winning total by a side batting second in a Test. From the seventh ball of their innings, when Sidhu was brilliantly caught off Fraser by the substitute, Adams, at short leg, it looked a tall order. On a slowly wearing pitch Hemmings produced just enough deviation to have both Manjrekar and Azharuddin caught in the leg trap - but it was the gay abandon of three senior Indian batsmen which might have set Tendulkar a bad example. Shastri dragged a wide ball on to his stumps, Vengsarkar offered no stroke to Lewis, and Kapil Dev sallied down the pitch to Hemmings.

When the all-rounder, Prabhakar, joined Tendulkar, India were 183 for six and there were two and half hours of the match remaining. Gooch crowded the bat and shuffled his bowlers like a croupier, but England were to be denied by their own mistakes. Hemmings put down a simple return catch when Tendulkar was 10, and Gooch failed to get a hand at second slip to a chance offered by Prabhakar. England could ill afford such lapses, and the pair had seen India to safety when the game was halted with two of the final twenty overs still to be bowled.

Tendulkar remained undefeated on 119, having batted for 224 minutes and hit seventeen fours. He looked the embodiment of India's famous opener, Gavaskar, and indeed was wearing a pair of his pads. While he displayed a full repertoire of strokes in compiling his maiden Test hundred, most remarkable were his off-side shots from the back foot. Though only 5ft 5in tall, he was still able to control without difficulty short deliveries from the English paceman.

Man of the Match: S. R. Tendulkar.

Link for score card of match
http://www.cricinfo.com/ci/engine/match/63535.html

Manoj Prabhakhar pats Young Sachin for a job well done



Click Here
to see the video of the innings

India @ 62 loves Sachin Tendulkar and asks for more!



Mahendra Singh Dhoni, Yuvraj Singh, Virender Sehwag might have arrived ...

But for a school going kid, who bats in the streets and the maidans of our country, he still dreams to be a Sachin Tendulkar!

Sachin's stance, style of play is what every kid on the streets of India wants to impersonate. Everyone wants a slice of the little genius. We found Sachin over 20 years back as a prodigiously talented teenager; even our mums loved him. The curly hair, the boyish looks, he was the kid in a man's world.

In the 1990s, Sachin became synonymous with the Indian cricket team. When Tendulkar would be dismissed early in an innings the spectators in the stadium retreated, and the ones watching at home switched off their TV sets.

For a million Indians, the word Sachin spelled hope. Sachin was also the only Indian batsmen whose game did not falter when playing on the hard and bouncy or seaming tracks abroad. He was at ease on all surfaces. He was one Indian batsman, whom we knew would never flinch in front of bouncers or short-pitch bowling. In the 1990s the Indian team did not win any Test matches outside the sub-continent, and the only consolation would be a Sachin hundred on foreign soil.



Man of all season

Away from Tests, Sachin's attacking style of play made him an exciting proposition in the 50-over version of the game. Every time he was called onto bat, the expectations surged-anything less than a hundred was deemed as a failure. In the ODIs, Sachin played a number of memorable knocks, but one of his innings stands out. Remember the 'desert storm' in Sharjah in 1998, when he single-handedly took the Indians to the finals of the tournament, and then followed it by a match-winning innings in the same. He psyched the Australians then and simultaneously mesemerized us.

But for the champions, the real test is not only the numbers but the spirit as well. Just days after his father's funeral death, Sachin returned to score a century in World Cup England 1999. Such is Sachin Tendulkar.

The hundred that was dedicated to his father was testimony to his focus and a tribute to his commitment towards the Indian cricket team. In 2003 World Cup when the cricket fanatics were seething in anger, Sachin Tendulkar was called upon to do some firefighting on behalf of the team. When the master spoke, the nation listened, as he asked the fans to keep their faith.



Prodigy to institution


In the next few games India worked a turnaround chiefly on the back of some scintillating knocks from Sachin.

The beginning of this decade saw the younger brigade in the Indian team come to the fore. As for Sachin, he never grew old, yes the bones creaked much more, and tennis elbow injury kept him down for almost a year. The master though never got tired of making centuries. After surpassing Don Bradman's record of 29 Test centuries, Sachin is now at 42 and still counting for more. He is also the highest run maker in both Test match cricket and ODIs.

From a child prodigy to an institution of the game itself, Sachin has walked straight into the hearts of his fans and his team members alike. He is the senior member now, a person to whom everybody looks up to for all sorts of advice.



Mentor of Team India!


Be it a technical flaw in the batting style of a way to deal with all the pressure on the cricketing field, Sachin Tendulkar is the man-to-go for all the members of the team. On the field or off it, Sachin soothes the nerves of his team members, by constantly joking and squeezing in humour in the tense dressing room atmosphere. The master is enjoying the success of the Indian team , something which he missed doing during the 90's.

For the fans, he is the cricketer for whom kids have bunked school, the office-goers have feigned illness. After a hard day's work he is the one guy who has lit up the faces of the common man, with his breath-taking performances. Everyone relishes Sachin Tendulkar. His game, his smile, his humility has charmed one and all. At the age of 36, Sachin is still playing with the same passion, the same hunger that he had when he first held the bat to thrash a turning or a swinging ball to the boundary. All we can say is may the good work continue for a long time in the future. India@62 loves Sachin Tendulkar and asks for more!

Young India dreams to be a Sachin Tendulkar!!

Anything For A Quiet Life

A black Mercedes pulls up to the curb in a central London street and out steps Sachin Tendulkar. There are no crowds, no bodyguards, and no one pays any attention to this stocky and unremarkable gentleman who, aside from a chunky watch, looks like any other office worker as he stops to make a call on the pavement.

Tendulkar wanders up and down the busy street, tourists and Londoners walking past him, enjoying the midsummer warmth and the rare anonymity. It is a mundane act for the rest of us but a treat and something to revel in for him.

“I like it here, I have more freedom to do whatever I want and move around without any problems,” he says. “I enjoy that feeling, it is very different for me. I am given my space, which is important, and I can go for nice walks in the parks.”

While his Indian team-mates were unsuccessfully attempting to defend their World Twenty20 title Tendulkar was here to spend time with his family at their London home. He watched cricket from the stands, went to the men’s final at Wimbledon, took a trip to Iceland to sample some cold weather, took his nine-year-old son Arjun for net sessions at Lord’s and simply enjoyed unmolested trips to the cinema and restaurants.

When asked if he could repeat any of these pursuits in Mumbai he laughs and looks utterly astonished at the question. “No, no, no, I couldn’t do any of that, I have not done it for a long time and I don’t see myself doing it again really.”

Back home in India, of course, Tendulkar is an icon. His every movement and utterance are monitored, while his image is on billboards and in as many as a quarter of all advertisements on Indian television.

Tendulkar recalls one public appearance several years ago in Bangalore when nearly 200 policemen were needed to control an impromptu crowd of up to 7,000 people after word had spread he was in the city.

“There have been a few scary moments but that was the worst, it was out of control and there didn’t seem to be enough policemen,” he says. “A lot of people wanted to get close to me, it was just affection but there was a chance of me or others getting injured.”

To avoid a repeat Tendulkar rarely ventures out or, when he does, it is in disguise or very early in the morning. “I have sometimes worn a baseball cap, a beard, spectacles and a wig not to be noticed,” he says with a smile. “It was just a bit of fun and I was once getting away with it until I dropped the spectacles and a couple of guys recognised me.”

“I also love going for a drive about 5am, when the roads are empty and people won’t see me. I am not driving fast, just 25mph, I listen to relaxing music, there is no one else, I like it being just me on my own.”

Today Tendulkar has come to the Opus store in Covent Garden to promote his own forthcoming Opus, a mammoth 800-page book weighing 30 kilos, which will tell the story of his career (see panel). Tendulkar is only the second sportsman after Diego Maradona to be given such lavish treatment.

Tendulkar remains humble and warm, obliging and polite, speaking in a soft voice.

In a room decorated with large images of Tendulkar and his greatest innings he will later hold a press conference that offers a glimpse into the madness of his life. It begins with a nurse taking a swab of saliva for his DNA profile, which will then become a work of art for his Opus. It ends with a gaggle of fawning Indian journalists, prefacing their questions with statements such as “I would like you to know I named my son ‘Sachin’ … ”

Tendulkar is at pains to make clear that the launch of his Opus does not signal the end of his career and, while at 36 it is inevitably approaching, he has set no retirement date, even privately.

“I have given it no thought at all,” he says, “I am good at cricket, so I will play a while longer. I still love the game as much as ever, it is my job but it remains my passion too. This is fun. Cricket remains in my heart.”

As the scorer of both the most Test and one-day runs, as well as the most Test and one-day centuries Tendulkar’s standing as one of the modern game’s greatest players is secure, and the 2002 Wisden argued that only Sir Donald Bradman can claim to be better in the entire history of the sport. Even so he is far from sated. He wants more. Tendulkar once said being satisfied is like pulling up the handbrake on a car and expecting it to keep moving forward.

“I am not pleased yet with what I have done,” he says shaking his head. “Sunil Gavaskar has told me that I have to get to 15,000 runs, he said he would be angry with me, he would come and catch me if I didn’t. I admire him so much and to score that many would be a terrific achievement but that is not the only aim.” What else? “Winning the World Cup in 2011.”

To prolong his Test and one-day career Tendulkar has decided not to play Twenty20 internationals. “I felt as though I would have been a loose link in the team, I couldn’t do that to them,” he says. “I was not sure I would last, there was something missing. If my body wasn’t strong enough to last through the tournament then I couldn’t play.”

At 36, does he feel his body is letting him down? He pauses to think. “No, it still does what I want it to but I am older so it is different, you just have to work harder. There are moments when I try something and it doesn’t happen but it isn’t because of my age.”

“I always play in pain, all the time, the last three months I played with a broken finger but you know when pain is manageable or not and most of the time I can do it.”

“I can still do what I did when I was 25 but the body is changing, so your thought process has to change too. I have had to change how I think, which is about taking less risk.”

In recent years Tendulkar has tightened his style, becoming increasingly cautious, but he remains as prolific as ever with an average of 52.11 over the last 18 months. The last year also contained what he considers to be his greatest innings, the unbeaten 103 he made against England in Chennai, for the performance but also for its defiant symbolism coming weeks after the terrorist attacks in Mumbai.

Even so some figures in the game have suggested Tendulkar’s powers might be on the wane, including the former Australian coach John Buchanan, who has said he might be losing his confidence against short and quick bowling. Tendulkar’s eyes narrow and he looks close to being annoyed before laughing loudly.

“It is only his opinion, John Buchanan doesn’t have to be right all the time,” he says with a knowing smile. “If I couldn’t handle short deliveries, then I wouldn’t still be scoring runs. Maybe he needs to change his opinion … There must be something very wrong with all the bowlers around the world that they have allowed me to score so many runs.”

After two decades playing international cricket, how has he so ruthlessly accumulated these runs? “The secret to batting is to stay still and just react to what the bowler has done,” he says, making it all sound simple. “You have to be still both in your mind and physically. It is so important that your mind is not full of a lot of thoughts because your reaction time is not going to be good. You have to keep your mind blank.

“The toughest thing is to clear your mind. The mind always wants to be in the past or the future, it rarely wants to be in the present. My best batting comes when my mind is in the present but it doesn’t happen naturally, you have to take yourself there. I am not able to get in that zone as often as I would like but, when you are there, you don’t see anything except the bowler and the ball. You have to allow your instincts to take over, trust me, your instincts are 99% right but, you know, the older I get the more I realise how important your breathing is to good batting. By that I mean, if you focus on
breathing and relaxing, you can force yourself into a comfortable place to bat.”

And when the end does finally come Tendulkar says he will not resist it: “I will know when it is the right time, I won’t have to be dragged away … I am the person who will make the decision and I will know whether I still belong.” And what will he do afterwards? “I would like to do something with the game.”

How will he adjust to life without playing cricket? “It is a scary thought,” he says candidly. “It has been there for my whole adult life, it will be difficult, I have been around for a long time, I can imagine when I finish I will long to face just 10 more balls but you have to move away.”

Who will surpass Tendulkar’s record haul of runs? Bradman anointed Tendulkar the player who most reminded him of himself and picked him as the only modern player in his all-time XI. Would Tendulkar extend the same compliment to anyone? “I would say Virender Sehwag comes closest to my style.”

What state will Tendulkar leave the game in when he does eventually retire? He made his name in Test cricket but he has significantly added to his fortune with the emergence of Twenty20 as captain of the Mumbai Indians in the Indian Premier League.

“There is no way Test cricket is dying,” he says. “Twenty20 cricket is the dessert and you can’t survive on that. Who wants to eat only desserts? Test cricket is my main course, with all the meat and vegetables, and then it is nice to have Twenty20 as a dessert.”

But does he have any fears about the growing influence of Twenty20 cricket? “I started playing cricket at six with a tennis ball not because I wanted to be a millionaire but because I loved cricket,” he replies. “Maybe in 10 years or even now people will pick up cricket bats thinking only about the huge money in Twenty20 cricket. Money should just be coincidental. The passion and the desire are the most important thing. I worry about runs, not contracts.”

Following the attacks on the Sri Lanka team in Lahore and those attacks in Mumbai, which prompted the IPL to relocate temporarily to South Africa, Tendulkar has seen terrorism pose an increasing threat to cricket.

“It was a horrible surprise … I was shocked about what happened to the Sri Lankans. I always thought that sportsmen would be left alone and we wouldn’t be targeted.”

Would he ever feel safe touring Pakistan again? “It is not up to me to judge whether it was safe, it is up to the government to make those decisions once they have done their homework.” And that would be enough? “Probably, yes.”

A couple of hours after his arrival, a small band of mostly Indian students are now milling around the front of the store and attempting to take pictures of Tendulkar through the windows.

They are open-mouthed when Tendulkar then steps outside to meet them and sign autographs before strolling down the street, with two unnecessary doormen, to pose for a ph
otograph in the middle of Covent Garden. Once more, even accompanied by a photographer this time, no one gives him so much as a second look. And that is just the way he likes it.

What an Encore! - By Anon Payn

Ah! Here we go! Again. The time is here. We'll all rejoice. A nation will be in frenzy. What times! Lets enjoy it while its here. To the fullest! Because, this too shall pass.

I think the last time there was such a feverish pitch surrounding Indian cricket, it was 1998. And not surprisingly, the protagonist of that play remains the protagonist in this encore! Yes, these are amazing times. At times, on would wish to freeze such a moment. Sounds childish. I can almost hear some of those voices, "It's only a game!" But hell! If it was so, there wouldn't be this much said, written, and indeed, celebrated! It's another landmark in the history of Indian cricket. Have no doubt. This isn't one of those ‘flash in the pan' moments. This series will be remembered as the one that witnessed the change of guard; its audience has witnessed the last stand of an era. And what a gifted audience we are! It's been more than a decade of domination. A juggernaut has run its course. It may not be the end of Australia's run as the number one side in the world, but it's for certain that it will never wear the cape of invincibility again. Well, at least till it unearths a few Warnes, McGraths, and Waughs again.


In the near future, it's very difficult to foresee an Aussie side utterly dominating world cricket. The loss of Gilchrist will only add to the burden that Ponting has already been carrying since late '06. The fact that this day would arrive, we all could see. The Ashes of 2005 was the soothsayer in this tragedy! It had predicted the "Ides of March" (what an irony!), when a missing McGrath was all that England needed to topple the Australians. They always prided in their rotation policy. "None of our stars will depart in a clutter", they said. "The transition will be smooth", they said. Well, I suppose they never really saw it coming. Who can blame ‘em? With those thick curtains in the form of McGrath and Warne, they probably couldn't see beyond. In their company, even rookies like Stuart Clark seemed geniuses! With a sound opening pair, the middle order batsmen were never tested, truly. On the litmus test, that India proved to be, the Husseys and the Clarkes, and of course, the Pontings did not respond when the absence of a Langer triggered an early wicket. It was a sad departure for Gilchrist. But a stern test for Ponting, it certainly was.


The captain has looked nothing but invincible ever since donning the mantle Steve Waugh left behind. Now, though, the pressure is showing. What it means to captain a less than godly bowling attack has hit the punter. And the batting is suffering. Of course, the bowling of Sharma and Co. has played the part in eroding the batting form away from Ponting. Alas, things don't look very dainty for him, as sterner tests await the man.


Many shall dwell on the happenings of this tour. Of all the places that Australia went wrong, and where India went right. And why not? The last four months has been about little, apart from these two giants, in world cricket. It's attracted the attention of cricket followers and casual on lookers alike. An unpleasant tour for the most part, in the larger context, this block-buster bonanza may spell an increase in viewership of the IPL as well as the next India-Australia series, slated to be in India later this year. The game was loosing its shine in the west, especially Test cricket, with the emergence of T-20. But now the crowds may be coming back. Test may still have its hay days.


Speaking of hay-days, I must return to the Protagonist! To be honest, already a million quills have written an elegy to an inning of amazing substance. Yet, I find it difficult to resist! Such is the aura of the Master. Indeed, the aura was at its height over the weekend (which actually ended up being an extended one, till Tuesday)! Yet, hindsight makes things look much more glamorous than they really are, at times. At times you tend to remember only the good, and not the bad and ugly, and crave for the moment to be back again. I never saw the "Twins of Sharjah" live. Perhaps the reason that I get so hooked whenever it's shown on the tely. Yet, watching the 117* live, I never realized how akin this was to a decade ago. Indeed I never expected the after effects to last so long. Maybe they shall last forever. Maybe that's why we are all Sachinists! The innings itself, wasn't flawless. It was very near perfection though. Sometimes flaws tend to make imperfect things perfect, rather than the opposite. That's precisely what I witnessed on Saturday. The start was circumspect, the middle was glorious, and the end was self assuring. The highlights tend not to do justice to such perfection. Yet, to the candid observer, the highlights may bring more satisfaction. The highlights probably won't show the difficulty that the inning was built around. What I witnessed in that inning, ball by ball, was the kind of stuff I have dreamt off. It wasn't as glamorous as the highlights show it to be. Yet the planning and execution of it all only added to my perpetually regenerating belief that this man is something unreal! Henceforth, only the highlights of the inning will be shown. The inside edge which missed the stump by just an inch will probably be erased, from the highlights, and eventually from our minds. The Genius shall be elevated to God yet again. Yet, a master shall be lost. A chunk of the glory of the triumph shall be cut out especially for him. A glorious career will proceed, without the uncertainties that dogged Ganguly and Dravid. Yes, I use ‘dogged' and not ‘dogging', perhaps echoing what's been on my mind, as in the minds of others, two legends might not wear the blues again. Probably a blessing in disguise, for it may prolong their Test careers by a good two, or more, years. In that, India has achieved what Australia set out to do. Phased out the "irreplaceables". And it was done in a smooth fashion too. First Laxman went through the dreaded door, followed by a more than willing Kumble. Suddenly, the team is not recognizable. But for one face. The face, that smiles, right from the top of the order. I had once thought that he should retire post the '07 World Cup. That, to the obvious ire of other Tendulkar fans whom I shared this with. They wanted him to continue his star studded career. Apparently, so does the man himself. He loves the game, and evidently does not want to part with any of his "toys", as Harsha Bhogle put it, in a hurry. And who can doubt his judgment? With master classes such the one at Sydney, it seems he will go on forever. In our minds at least, that's ever so possible!


The scenes beyond the ground, too, shall probably ring on in our hearts.
After that inning, right until Tuesday, it was all Sachin. Everywhere, the same chants. One couldn't expect the critics to accept that they were wrong. The egos meant those few stayed low throughout the euphoria, probably to emerge upon another failure. The fans, those with more of a reach to public media than others, were all over the television, newspaper, and indeed radio too.

As you turn 36 : By Anand Kumar

Sachin birthday celebrations

As you turn, 36, we wish you a very happy birthday, a great cricketing calendar ahead and a great life. Not that it really matters to you as you being the little master we all worship, but nevertheless we all do.

You undoubtedly have millions of fans and deservedly so. Over the past 20 years, as you have been rigorously involved in highest level of cricket, your fans have watched you with utter passion, love, awe and surprise at times. You have personally seen ups and downs in your careers despite ruling the game for most part of your career. I have been one of your fans who has watched you as much as I could and have also watched and kept an eye on your fans. This has allowed me to personally classify your fans among three broad categories.

Category -1 : Mad about Sachin: No matter what you do, how you play, how you perform, it is all about you for them. You are the boss and hence you are always right. When you are criticized, it hurts them and they think, someone is tarnishing your image and questioning your commitment. They madly defend you, sometimes to the extent of talking by the collar of the other person. They you to win all matches, score a 100 everytime and take wickers whenever you bowl and when you don't, they feel defeated and low.

Category-2: Sad about Sachin: They are exact opposite of category-1 but nonetheless they are your fans in equal measure. Afterall they follow you and they do so with the same intensity as the Category-1 fans do, only that they belong to category-2. They at times, invest more time than the category-1 fans. This category of fans, try to look for mistakes you might make which you are entitled to as a cricket player as well as a human being. When you score the first 90 runs with a strike rate of 100 and then take 18 balls for the next 10 runs, they rant about it declaring you play for your personal records, even though 100 of 108 balls overall still is a good score. They analyze you more than the category-1 fans and in fact force the category-1 fans to spend more time analyzing you, and hence they deserve attention. They also expect you to win all matches, score a 100 every time and take wickers whenever you bowl and when you don't, they get a chance to open their mouth.

Category-3: neither-mad-nor-sad about Sachin: They are more mature and probably understand the thing practical way. They know that as an individual's roles and responsibility changes over time one grows up, you also have changed and your roles and responsibility have changed over the period of time. They know that you can't play like a 16 year old kid when you are 36 and you are not supposed to. They know that you have to play like a 36 year old sachin among the younger Raina's, Sharmas and others, guiding them and helping the team achieve a balance. They are happier when you score runs, but not sad when you do not. They accept you, the way you are.

All are your fans and I know you accept them all because deep within you, you know that there has to be a balance in everything. As much as adulation is required, at times a bit of criticism also helps in keeping the feet grounded. Most interesting thing is, very few individual have been just one all the time. For example, I used to fall in category-1, then I also fell into category-2 for a while but now I certainly fall into Category-3. Most of your fans have been like that.

On your 36th birthday, Category-1 fans are sad about your future as they know you have added one more year to your life and you won't be playing out in the middle for long. They can't see cricket beyond you. Category-2 have been ranting about it ever since you crossed 30 anyways, but you proved things wrong many a times. They will do it more no matter what you do, but you have never cared for them as you know it better. I am sure you are going to continue the same way. As usual category-3 is not thinking anything, they are just enjoying your new role, your new responsibility and want to enjoy your contribution to the game as long as you play. And you are the BOSS as all of us say, so you must decide when the time comes. You only have the right because none of us, asked you to play so well over a period of 20 years.

Here is wishing you again, most success, many ODI and test centuries and victories for your loved team, India that is, and also for Mumbai Indians. A very happy birthday :-).

THE ESSENCE OF SACHIN--BY AYAZ MEMON

Nineteen years after I first met him, Sachin Tendulkar's zest for cricket remains undimmed. The 16-year-old prodigy is now a full-blown genius.

The boy has turned into man, the slender frame has filled out and the curls on his head are not as flush with hair as they used to be. But talk cricket, and you detect that the child in him remains intact.

Tendulkar turns 35 on April 24. The 19 years since Tendulkar made his debut against Pakistan in 1989 have gone past in a flash, as it were, but he has etched out an era that will remain memorable to posterity: as much for the remarkable quality of his cricket as what he meant to Indian life metaphorically. His colleagues and various experts who have contributed to this special issue all testify to this, albeit in different ways.

Like cinema and politics, cricket is wholly integrated into Indian life. Tendulkar not only filled up stadiums around the country with his dynamic batsmanship, but also filled the nation with hope. At the physical level, he was playing sport, at a subliminal level he was nurturing the ambitions of a young country that was breaking its shackles from a restrictive past.

Tendulkar had arrived when the Mandal agitation was at its peak and was quickly to demonstrate that where skill was concerned, reservations were unmerited, unwanted.
So great was his talent and such was his appeal that he was to become the country's most recognised face.

Willy-nilly, he was also to become the symbol of liberalization too when he became the country's highest earning sportsperson through endorsements and the like. The equation between performance and reward was never clearer, and there could not have been a more deserving person either.

For in spite of his phenomenal fame, the glory and wealth he has garnered, Tendulkar retains his humility. He is a man of many strokes but few words. He likes to let his bat do the talking. When he does speak or take a position, the world listens, as happened in the Harbhajan Singh controversy in Australia.

He shuns controversy like the plague. It seems truly astonishing to me — indeed surreal — that anybody with such a high profile should have steered clear of controversy for so long. It reveals a man who knows his mind, man who takes his status seriously and lives up to the responsibility with due diligence. In many ways, it is not just cricket which makes him superhuman.

Tendulkar has frequently been compared to Don Bradman as a batsman, but for me the `biggest' similarity between Bradman and Tendulkar is the manner in which both have coped with the phenomenal pressures of personal and public expectation and lived up to it.

No two individuals in the history of the game meant so much for so many people for so long. Through their cricketing excellence, Bradman and Tendulkar not only established the identity of their respective nations on the world but, in the process, helped millions of their countrymen find their national identity too.

For all his centuries and records that, to me, is the true essence of Sachin Tendulkar.

Sachin Tendulkar--a 'MATCH'LESS winner - By Karthik.sachgod


It is with a great deal of dissapointment and frustration, which i share with thousands of cricket lovers all around the world,that I write about the master...not just a poetic description of the joy brings to the game ,but a scathing reply to all his detractors,in particular, (un)WIS(e)DEN.

The PHENOMENON:

Four sixes to as many corners of the ground and the Pakistani left-arm-spin-wizard, Abdul Qadir woke up to the brilliance of a sixteen year old lad from his Eastern Neighbour....It was not long ,before cricket pundits' apocalyptic predictions for bowlers started proving true.Sachin Tendulkar marauded attacks with murderous sadism and brute force ...and yet,with a ballet dancer's grace...And for fifteen long years,he showcased not just his technical prowess ,but an indomitable courage, an unflinching commitment to the team's cause and an unquenchable thirst for success.....that has captured the imagination of an entire generation.

Why then, would someone have to plead his case ,one might wonder........for, we live in a world ruled by critics (aided very ably by sycophantic fans) ,who spend their lives under the delusion of having the power to make or break 'greatness' by correspondingly recognising or derecognising it ......Tendulkar is no exception to being a victim of this wile trade...their favourite wave to ride on??--"HE'S NOT A MATCH WINNER"......and here I am.

Cricket, to start of with, is a team-game....Just like football......where, every individual has a specific role to play--succeeding at which,is both the individual's and the team's cause.The defender is as important as the forward who actually nets the ball.So it is in cricket.The man who bowls the first ball is as important as the man who scores the winning runs....Though it is common knowledge that individuals with extraordinary talent can control the flow of a game,an individual, as a rule, cannot completely effect a favourable outcome for his team.
Fifteen years on the international arena,and it's anyone's guess( as has been proven in practice) that Sachin is nothing short of genius.

Alas!! i have had to resort to the language spoken so commonly in cricketing circles...the 'numbers-game'....let's play just a few rounds...

....a blistering 155 not out under the chennai sun, to tame the all-conquering Aussies(2nd innings)....... a wonderfully scripted 193 on a seaming Headingly wicket against england...

....braving the storms, in the truest sense of the word, in sharjah(143 and 137%)...and of course ,a scintillating 98 against pakistan in world cup 2003,which saw him as the highest scorer of the tournament.

A dazzling 119 at the Old Trafford …and what better purpose could a first hundred serve, than to save a match???

An astounding display of technique and counter-attack on a bouncy Perth wicket ….a blistering 136 with a back that was giving way faster than a fifth-day wicket, on which a magical Saqlain spun the ball like a top---both ,instances only an inept Indian team fraught with incredibly low levels of commitment and grit…(not to mention, morality), could lose.

Now we come to the most interesting part of the statistics….the most important too….
26 out of 34 of his test hundreds have come in a winning cause; giving him a success rate of 76% ..........and 29 of his 37 hundreds in one-day-internationals have contributed to a winning cause; giving him a staggering 79% success rate.

In view of the oft made comparison to the genius of Lara, it is worth mentioning that Lara averages just over 39 in the second innings while Sachin averages just under 38. Would someone help me see the gaping void between the two…..…..It may also be a matter of interest to know that Lara’s 7 test hundreds out of 27 brought them victory--a success rate just over 25%---feels terrible to know doesn’t it ???.. but so the numbers say.....Going by the simple logic that the more consistent batsman should be in a better position to win a match for his team,being a great admirer of Lara's myself,I find it beyond my ability to comprehend as to how Lara is a 'BIGGER MATCH WINNER".

The QUESTION OF CONTEXT:

Keeping in mind peoples’ superlatively short memories, I would like to draw to your attention, an instance from the very recent past that brought an overwhelmingly familiar sense of déjà vu with it ---the fourth one-dayer in the recently concluded one-day series---a beautifully paced 123 from Sachin with a complete array of shots sets India up for 300-plus total---AND WE LOSE-----the critics unleash their pens directed at Sachin in all their sublime derisive glory …..Perhaps they wanted him to make up, in some way or other, for the Indian pacers feeding Afridi with rank-bad bowling; in a knock that proved most decisive???...

.or maybe they wanted him to compensate for Dhoni flooring a sitter from Afridi’s edge early in his innings???...or was it for Yuvi’s failure to cup one off Malik’s bat???......Would someone please care to define for me what a “Match Winning Inning” in a first essay/inning would be???...Not worth a try uh??......How effective, do u think, a brilliant ‘forward’ would be, if he had an absolute loser saving for his team????In all fairness, hasn’t he still won if he’s done all he can but still cant cover up for the collective incompetence of his teammates????.....Surely worth pondering my well-meaning fellas.

Sachin Tendulkar is no doubt, a MATCHLESS WINNER, with a balance that is seldom associated with ‘genius’.While what is being done, is gross injustice to a rare talent; its contextually wedded splendour, lost completely in translation to results based on skewed statistical premises.

P.S.
Lesson learnt::
Criticise the weak and extoll the great... you're just one in a million....But deprecate the best....And ......you have 'em looking.......

How I Met Life - By Madhyama

25th October 2007

A day I can never forget.

A day when my dream came true.

A day when time stopped still in the madhyama world.

A day when I met Sachin Tendulkar !

Yes, THAT day!! how can I ever describe it ! that's the day when 25 became the most beautiful number and Hotel Maurya Sheraton , Delhi , became the most sacred place in the whole of India ! for that's the day and place on which I finally got proof that Sachin Tendulkar wasnt a myth . that he actually existed , in flesh blood and bones . that there actually was somebody who could change millions of lives everyday .our dictionary doesn't have words enough to describe what all happened to me that day !

There I was impatiently waiting for Him to come . fidgeting all around , unmindful of hunger, thirst or fatigue . not believing it all was actually happening . not believing that in a few moments Sachin himself would be in front of me .not believing that I could be so very blessed ! that's when there was some commotion in the main entrance of at mighty hotel .i rushed as I have never rushed...

There he was , clad casually in a red T- shirt , blue jeans and goggles , an aura of power and peace emanating from him . he looked magical ! I stood rooted to the spot . couldn't move an inch . my voice died in my throat . the only thing I did was to look at his serene face . looking at him strangely filled me with immense calm and wonder . sense prevailed. I thought to myself " madhi , this is the one chance you have , go forward ". But my legs didn't want to move ! I stood transfixed .somehow though, I made a move. I thought, could it be this easy, just one more step and I will be standing alongside my idol ? I took that one step, it was the most laborious step I have ever taken . but then no other step changed my the way this one did , so it was more than worth it !! ...I was next to him...I still don't remember what I said , I only know that mumbled for his autograph... he was holding a bouquet ...he smiled...oh god , he smiled ....he stopped next to me ...he was looking at me ....HE WAS LOOKING AT ME !!!! ... he gave the bouquet to someone else ...had a look at my Sachin diary , signed it and went ahead ...I don't know whether I said thank you or not...I probably didn't , couldn't .....

I wanted to tell him how much he meant to me. I wanted him to know how my whole life and personality had been determined by his presence. I wanted to show him how much more than a great cricketer he was .i wanted him to know how looking at him made me feel blessed to be living and how I pray to god everyday for his happiness and peace . I wanted him to know that I learnt my biggest lesson, of being courageous enough to dream, from him ....i wanted to hold him ...to say thank you ....

but I couldn't say anything .not one single word... I just stood there , feeling him beside me, blessed to be breathing from the same air as him , watching at his hand trace our his signature and then watching him go away ! everyday since then , whenever I am sad or depressed , the thought of this amazing day fills me up with hope and happiness !! I get faith that as long as somebody like him is around , there is hope for this crazy world. I get reassured that if ever I feel that life isn't worth living I will only have to remember those few hours spent at Maurya Sheraton , to know how good dividends one can get paid to be alive .I hope others like me are also bestowed upon with such an honour and that they are sensible enough to value it . but more than any of this , I feel peaceful , serene , calm and happy from the very roots of my heart . I feel alive !!

When going gets tough, Sachin gets going - By Sachin Fan(atic)

It was an afternoon of Trentbridge in 2007 when Sachin was once again in business. As he normally do, diminishing the England bowling attack with ease and grace. There were many so called “experts” who had again shown their doubts on the capability of the greatest sportsman of country which has second largest population in the world.

And again master was replying to these morons with his bat. But on the score of 91, one shocking decision ended his innings. He was aghast and his fans were in tears. Its was just one of the many instances of that UK tour when Sachin was victim of bad decision. But he took all such things sportingly and kept scoring runs. And at the end his supporters were again feeling proud and critics were in invisible mode.

It has been the story from the beginning of the career of the little genius that he has to always answer those people who just for publicity put doubts on his talent. They use their mouth for questions and master uses his bat to answer. Countless times when all the other batsmen could not perform he was the lone warrior. In hundreds of ODIs he was the one who gave our bowlers a respectable total to defend.

In the 1991 Ausssies tour (his first) he scored a century on the fastest pitch of Perth and made the grate Don his fan. Windies attack of Walsh, Ambrose and Bishop was left in awe by his scintillating strokeplay . Dr. Nelson Mandela was one of the lucky viewers on the ground when he made a brilliant 169 at Capetown . Wasim, Waquar , Saqlain and Shoiab couldn’t stop him from making a century in Chennai . The pitch was same for all the other batsmen but only Sachin had the technich and mental to perform . His never say die attitude was responsible for an average looking Indian batting line up look strong . These are just few instances and if you check record books you will find many like these .

Things havnt been easy for the Champ off the field as well . In 99 WC he has to return back after attending funeral of his father to join the team . It was because our greats were failed to beat even Zimbabwe in his absence . You wont find a better example of commitment than this. Later on his career was marked by injuries . But he kept fighting them and each time he came back stronger . his 93 against SriLanka and 141 against WI were examples of that . After a dismal WC 2007 he showed his class in Bangla test series and against SA by getting MOS awards . Someone has said ,” Greatest glory of man is not in never falling, but in raising after every time he falls .” Sachin has seen many ups and downs in his cricketing life but still he is the hope of billions. An answer to our prayers . forget about the normal public , even greats Like Hayden and Yuvraj has publicly stated that Sachin is God of cricket .

Even a 1000 page book wont be sufficient to define the greatness of this man . in hindi there is one sher ,

“Hazaaro saal nargis apni benuri pe roti hai,
Tab jaake hota hai chaman me didawar paida.”

And at the end I would like to quote one line fron the article of girish (the best I ever read abt the God) “You can take Sachin out of the cricket field, but not from our life”.

What makes SACHIN TENDULKAR a living legend?


Best in the World





Belief in himself, the will to win, the fear and respect of the rivals--he has it all. India's star batsman is sheer genius. What makes him a living legend?

By Rohit Brijnath and Peter Roebuck.

I don't think anything is impossible. Of course, I'm not always right.
-- Sachin Tendulkar, after scoring 143 against Australia


This is the first thing about genius. Self-belief. Inside the stomach of some men smoulders a defiance that is abnormal, a will so powerful that no ordinary barometer can register it. We dream, Tendulkar does. On that day when the sandstorm blew in to stop play -- it was God announcing he had taken his seat -- Tendulkar told coach Anshuman Gaekwad in the dressing room: "Don't worry I'll be there in the end." Don't worry! With four of the topline batsmen out and 94 runs to get in 87 balls; Vinoo Mammen of MRF telling his wife, "Let's go to the hotel and cry", and hope generally abandoned by all. Except by one man. Later, a spectator says, "It's sad one billion people in India have to rely on one man."

This is the second thing about genius. Desire. They could have turned off the lights in Sharjah, Tendulkar's shots would have illuminated the city, such is the sunlight of his batting. India has qualified for the final, but he paces the dressing room hissing, "I was not out." It was the rage of a man who believes he has no limits. He was not there to help India qualify, he was there to win the match. We dream small, Tendulkar lives bigger. Says Allan Border, Australian coach, a day later: "Hell, if he stayed, even at 11 an over he would have got it."

This is the third thing about genius. Fear. From the Aussie dressing room bustling with hard men, all sorts of stories emerge. One strategy is "get the bugger to the other end"; another says, "We bowled short, on the off stump, nothing worked." Michael Kasprowicz is sort of speechless. In the first match, he hits Tendulkar on the pads, smirks, gets hit for two successive fours. This match it's two successive sixes. Now he swears, "Shit, I'm sick of this *$#%."

This is the final thing about genius and that innings. Respect. Next day, by the pool side of the Princeton Hotel, WorldTel boss Mark Mascarenhas throws a party for Tendulkar. Friday, final day, is his birthday and it strikes you starkly that as he turns 25, he has more centuries (14 in one dayers, 16 in Tests) than he has years in front of his name. Meanwhile, in a corner the conversation goes something like this:

Border: It's scary, where the hell do we bowl to him.
Ian Chappell: Yeah mate, but that's with all great players.
Border: Well yes, but imagine what he'll be like when he's 28.


I'd like to see him go out and bat one day with a stump. I tell you he'd do okay."
- Greg Chappell.


Finish the argument, close the conversation, end the discussion about Brian Lara. The Aussies insist. Mark Waugh says, "Sachin's better; Lara is more risky outside the off stump." Shane Warne adds, "Nothing affects Sachin, Brian lets things bother him." Steve Waugh then takes the debate to a higher plane with one statement, a grand canyon of a compliment actually: "In history Sachin will go down as second to Bradman." What he's saying is this: Tendulkar owns the present, and perhaps one day will surpass the past as well.


It is too early to go further, but this much can be said already. His average in Tests at 54.84 is already higher than those of Greg Chappell, Vivian Richards, Javed Miandad, Lara, or Sunil Gavaskar. But it's not just that, it's not either the awesome truth that in 61 Tests he has 16 centuries, while Richards got 24 in 121 Tests. No, statistics are not the scale to judge him by; it is in the stories that the bowlers tell, the men who stare at him down 22 yards. Listen to Warne: "You have to decide for yourself whether you're bowling well or not. He's going to hit you for fours and sixes anyway." Kasprowicz has a superior story. During the Bangalore Test, frustrated, he went to Dennis Lillee and asked, "Mate, do you see any weaknesses?" Lillee replied, "No Michael, as long as you walk off with your pride that's all you can do."

There is no one thing to greatness. It is physical, alertness, technique, wisdom, humility, patience, vision, but more a confluence of these in one surging river of genius. Tendulkar, five centuries in his last 12 Test innings, but not yet arrived at his peak, is a river bursting its banks. What doesn't he have?

He is short, a Maradona of a man at 5 ft 4 inch, and, like the footballer, blessed with a balance that all sport demands. He can see so well that as the ball leaves the bowler's hand, he has decided -- while lesser men are still deciding -- where to go, back or forward. He is never wrong.

He is calm, the impulses from his brain bringing the message to the body never impeded by tension or indecision. When he does this, he gains something: time. Other men look rushed, he unhurried and able to play any shot he desires, arrogant hook or artful slide.


He has vision or what Chappell calls "peripheral awareness", a man who without looking already has a map of the field logged into his brain.

He has technique, says Ravi Shastri, meeting the ball under the chin and the eyebrow where timing comes sweetest. It is so outrageous these gifts, to play with the abandon of a street thug and yet with the finesse of Michelangelo, that some men find it unreasonable. Master technician Geoffrey Boycott, so goes one story, actually called to argue when Gavaskar recently said that Tendulkar's technique was the best.

He has ... is there anything left? Yes, he has strength, in wrist, in thigh. The heavy bat helps. Still, says Warne, he has enormous power. "It's a bit discouraging. In India he ran down the pitch and hit me off the toe of the bat. It should have gone to mid-on but it went for a six." On that day in Sharjah, it was in evidence again. Gaekwad was stunned, for Tendulkar was running singles like a demon -- four 3s, fifteen 2s, thirty-five 1s -- yet hitting sixes (five of them) in between. "The running tires you, yet he was never out of position for a shot."

"In an over I can bowl six different balls. But then Sachin looks at me with a sort of gentle arrogance down the pitch as if to say 'Can you bowl me another one?'"
-- Adam Hollioke to a friend.

So what is it Tendulkar, what's the motivation, what moves you? Records? No. He just says, flatly, "It's the challenge that drives me."

There is an understanding, a never articulated awareness among the abnormally gifted that records will arrive anyway. It is the situation to be mastered, the opponent to be numbed that pushes such men. It is elevating not oneself but an entire sport, it is stretching the envelope of possibility, it is all this desire that lurks within Michael Jordan and John McEnroe and Sachin Tendulkar. Eleven versus one on the cricket field is the Tendulkar fantasy. Says Shastri: "I have never seen such arrogance, such contempt for bowlers since Richards."

Yet it takes work, talent bolstered by industry. Tendulkar will sweat at the nets on a line that troubles him. He would, prior to tours of the West Indies, get net bowlers to fire away at him from 18 yards. When he was told that like the Sri Lankans who discomforted him by bowling down the legside, Warne might aggravate him similarly, he went to the nets in Mumbai, snuffed the pitch where he expected the ball to land and asked the bowlers to bowl there. When Warne arrived, the greatest batsmen in the world awaited him. Ready.

Now the search begins, in all earnestness, for the chink of daylight in his stance, the edge of weakness in his method. Tendulkar himself sees none. "I don't think I need to improve in any specific area, just generally." The Aussies are as unhelpful. Steve Waugh feels -- and check this for a weakness -- "his only danger is seeing the ball too well and going for his shot too early". Warne says bowl dot balls to frustrate him. Kasprowicz says, "Don't bowl him bad balls, he hits the good ones for fours."

They know, Tendulkar knows there is no fragility apparent. As with all such men, it is only themselves who can prove to be the enemy; Tendulkar may nurture his genius or spurn it, the responsibility of greatness lies with him. It seems he understands that. He is surer now than before, less driven to petulant strokes or rakish indiscretion. That innings was just a reminder, a page from a book, that this is a batsman who was conceived under God's full attention. Imagine, what greater deeds remain, the other pages of that book are yet to be turned.

Of that night some final stories remain. Chappell saying, "What would I want of his batting? Everything." And then finally, Ajay Jadeja, echoing us all: "I can't dream of an innings like that. He exists where we can't."