The Tendulkar Tale

When I was in school, and our regular teacher was absent, there was a substitute teacher in place whose only directive was to keep the class engaged somehow. And their standard method was to ask kids what they wanted to be when they grew up. Everyone, as usual, went doctor, engineer, teacher, armyman (LOL, no one I know ever became one) etc. I frankly had no idea. I am not sure if I have an idea today also, but anyway that's a different story. So, I used to mumble something on the lines of being a journalist(LOL again) or something. But at the bottom of my heart, there was only one thing I wanted to do, however frivolous and far fetched it would have been, and that was to be slotted at No.5 below S.Tendulkar in the Indian batting line up. Sometimes, these fantasies just drive one's childhood, amid all those boring Science and Civics classes, the thrill of going back home and watching Tendulkar slaughter bowling attacks was all one needed.

You may think I am exaggerating, but honestly, it was a very sincere love I had for Tendulkar. The kind of love that can make a kid happy or sad based on how well he batted. My utter fascination for Tendulkar began I think somewhere in early '92 when India toured Australia for a Test/ODI series and the subsequent World Cup. I was seven. No one taught me in detail on how to watch cricket, my father taught me the basics, but beyond that it was all instinctive. The clearest memory I have is of him scoring 70 odd against West Indies. Why was I so bewitched? Now that I am older and wiser(?), I think there was only one reason. It was in the way he batted. Everyone around him was plodding and poking and making ugly swipes. With Sachin, it was - bold, brash and thrilling. I know his game has completely changed now, but if you watch the early Tendulkar it wasn't too different from the way Sehwag bats even today. He had an abandon to his batting approach, and at the same time he was so balanced and poised, it was simply unparalleled. I also remember my first bat being a 'Power' for only one reason. It was Sachin's bat. Sadly being a left-hander, I never imagined myself to be Tendulkar, and hence it was always batting with him instead of batting like him.

Those who started watching cricket post 2000 might find it hard to understand this, but it's the period between 1994-98 that made my generation worship him so much. He was the only Indian batsman who was able to score abroad consistently, the only batsman who was capable of taking it to the opposition regularly despite challenging match situations, the only batsman who could influence the electricity consumption of a whole country. Look at the most of the ads made on him during that time frame. His initial ads, like Bajaj Sunny and Pepsi were impish, playing on the new kid on the block persona. But during the phase between '94-'98, it was sheer gratitude that he was carrying India on his growing shoulders. Pepsi made kids go Sachiiin, Adidas had grandmothers with beads praying  for him. The volume of pressure Sachin carried during that phase, as a torchbearer for Indian cricket, was immense.

    

               

    

I find it hard to categorize his batting into eras. But somehow, the feeling was roughly post 2000, he became a lot more calculated in his approach. Of course, he took risks, but they were more measured. He was making runs at a very healthy rate, but the thrill was sporadic. He did make memorable assaults in Nairobi (the one time he volubly took on Glenn McGrath), in Durban (when he hit Caddick to the trees), and unforgettably in Centurion. Also, Tendulkar now had well established fellow batsmen in Ganguly, Dravid, Sehwag and Laxman in his team. The dependency on him reduced severely, and India stopped being a one-man team. Simultaneously, the child in me had grown up and the reliance on Tendulkar was also waning. I don't by any means suggest that he was not important, it is just that even if Tendulkar did not play a game, we would do fine on the cricket field. This was very comforting.

It is here that we must remain eternally grateful to both Dhoni and Ganguly. They both were able to provide him with what he craved for most, an Indian victory (I am sure an international 100 ranked a close second, though he never quite admitted it). For someone who was fighting it all alone previously, in contentious environments, success with the national team must have been most gratifying. There were individual milestones in the nineties, but the look of joy on his face when we won Test Matches abroad, achieved the No.1 ranking in Tests, and crucially, the 2011 World Cup was something that relieved the fan in me more than anything. Reams of words have been written mentioning that Sachin should have stopped playing then, and I mostly tend to agree with that point of view. But again, for just this tiny giant, we had to make liberties. Sachin's struggle toward his 100th 100 was reminiscent of Kapil's struggle toward his 434. And sadly, it came against Bangladesh in Dhaka in a meaningless Asia Cup game. It was what we had come to. We still caught glimpses, like the 80-odd against Australia in Chennai which I was fortunate to witness, but it was evident that finally, father time was catching up. The news of his retirement, clearly invoked a sense of relief first and then came the outpouring of nostalgia.

Come November 18, there will be a tear in my eye. That tear will encapsulate 21 years of joy, sadness, agony, ecstasy, pride, regret, relief, love, wide-eyed wonder and finally gratitude. It has been a great ride, and we have done it. Millions of fellow Indians and I, have made this memorable journey with you and we are finally doing our last lap. Thank you Sachin Tendulkar.

Maybe I will still bat under you at No.5 in some veterans' corporate T10 tournament. The hope still resides.