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He’s 40 years old. His recent lean
patch is going on for a tad too long. His critics are as vocal as they ever
have been. Even some of his fans have deserted him and joined the critics. But
some fans will always be by his side. Sachin Tendulkar will always have my
support, come what may. You see I have partied and had a great time each time
he has scored all of his 100 tons, so it’s but my moral duty to support him in
a rare lean patch. Whenever he raises his helmet, I raise my hands and worship
his brilliance. If I have my way, Tendulkar will never retire.
It all started about 10 years ago. I
was 7 years old and had just been introduced to the game of cricket. And
somehow, I instantly fell in love with it. Ironically, it was an Indo-Pak match
which I first saw... It was India batting first with the openers being the gr8
Sachin and the then captain Ganguly. I had very little or almost no knowledge
of what the perfect technique was or how a shot should be played, but
Tendulkar’s batting immediately looked good to the eye. I just couldn’t take my
eyes off him. Everything seemed to be in place. And as I learned over the
years, that’s how it should be. Sachin had left his mark, an unforgettable one
too on my mind. So much so that now I hate to see the dreadful dawn of the day
when the Indian scorecard shows no SACHIN in it...
I found out from elders who were
cricket followers that from the 1996 world cup and as well for the next few
years, Indian cricket was and will be pretty much all about Tendulkar. They kept
talking good about his magic with the willow and I used to take a lot of
interest in their talks and kept my ears stick to them...
I always pleaded to my mom for allowing
me to take a holiday the next day if India had a match as school on match days
was nothing but torturous. If it were a day match, prayers were said in school,
asking God to ensure that India batted second. If it were a day-night match, a
huge mad rush followed after school to reach home as soon as possible to watch
our hero Tendulkar do what no one else did and will ever do better than him;
that has destroy the opposition attack to all possible corners of the
cricketing arena... There are too many memories of Tendulkar from the years
that have passed by, some which still bring a smile and some which make the
eyes moist. I leapt in joy (shock & amusement too) when I watched him take
on Shane Warne and co in Sharjah during the twin centuries – dancing down the
wicket to Warne and depositing him over the fence, lofting Damien Fleming and
Michael Kasprowicz straight over their head into the sightscreen for many half
a dozens. I watched with awe when he took the attack to Donald and Pollock
during the 169 at Cape Town, and when he thrashed Henry Olonga all over the
park in Sharjah; and when he again took out Warne, this time in India, and when
he notched up a flawless 111 at Melbourne, and when he scored a century in the
decider of the famous 2001 India-Aus test series; and when he unleashed a
series of upper-cuts and pulls during a 155 at Bloemfontein. The list of his
superb knocks doesn’t end here. I was nothing but disappointed about the fact
that why wasn’t I introduced to cricket a lot earlier so that I could have
watched all these magical knocks of his not in highlights but live when those respective
matches were telecasted.
The SHARJAH INNINGS CAN BE SEEN BELOW
I pumped my fist with utmost joy and
pride when he took on Wasim, Waqar and Akhtar at Centurion in 2003, and when he
announced his return to form with a 241 at Sydney; and when he took India home
in both the finals of the CB series in 200-08.
I stood up and applauded and threw a
party in the canteen for friends when he became the first man to reach 200 in
an ODI and when he kept rampaging Dale Steyn at bay during a masterful 146 at
Centurion.
THE MASTER SCORES FIRST ODI DOUBLE TON
"First man on the planet to reach
200 and its the superman from India" were the 1st spoken words on
commentary by Ravi Shastri when d Master Blaster broke the 200 run barrier. I
shed a tear when his 136 at a fourth day track in Chennai against Wasim, Waqar
and Saqlain fell tragically short of securing a victory, when he couldn’t do
much in the 2003 World Cup final and India fell just short of the ultimate
cricketing glory; and also when at Hyderabad in 2009, a repeat of Chennai 1999
happened with the team collapsing after Sachin’s exit for a classic 175. I shed
a tear on the 2nd of April 2011 too, but this time there was joy, there was
fulfilment. His more than two decade long dream had come true, and a billion
celebrated with him.
16 march 2012, the day edged in the
cricketing history forever was done when TENDULKAR scored his 100th
international century against Bangladesh, unfittingly though in a losing
cause...
The childhood desire to see Sachin take
on opposition attacks is there still today. He is the sole reason that despite
being from Delhi, I support the Mumbai Indians in the IPL.
Today, as I write this article, my eyes
have become a bit moist. There are way too many memories associated with this
(super) man. I used to stand with a bat in front of a mirror
 |
as a child trying to match my stance with his, if only I knew that it
was not possible for even the greatest of great like "the Ponting’s"
or "the Lara’s" and as per me even "the Bradman’s" to
replicate what the MASTER BLASTER had achieved... I was thus but not even the
merest of the mortal in front of the genius, impeccable and the god gifted
(rather god himself)...Every child in the locality wanted to be a cricketer,
everyone wanted to be Tendulkar. It’s not that the other stalwarts like Dravid,
Ganguly or Laxman have done any less for Indian cricket. But Tendulkar has been
around since the day I took to cricket and even long before I was born and he
has been there ever since. They say Sachin has reduced the no of atheists since
1989, well it’s more than cent percent true in my case. He still brings out the
child in me. He’s the first on d list of a host of treasured childhood
memories... The day Sachin Tendulkar retires, I’ll know that my childhood is
finally over. Presently I switch off my TV for a while when he gets out, I
wonder if I will ever switch on my TV set again once he is no more left playing
what has been made for him (or not what he has been made to do but what
has been made for him to do)..Cricket will lose substantial no of followers all
over the globe and will never be the same again...:((((
P.S.- This post has been written on a self implication by Ayush Bansal and reviewed by Aditya Goel.
Images and Videos by Aditya Goel.
Sources: Youtube, Google Images
