Growing up with Tendliya

I still vividly remember my first impression. It was the 92 world cup down under. I was 7 then. Mine was a cricket crazy family and the lure of watching sachin bat was used as a bait to wake me up early. That navy blue dress is still clearly etched in my mind. Although I hardly remember any of the sumptuous drives he may have played in that game but what I do know is that mine was a generation that grew up watching sachin. A vigil that would later turn into unabashed worship.

Twenty years have rolled on since he first wore the India cap but that cherubic demeanor and the twinkle in his eye is still as fresh. No one since Gandhi has been able to rally people of this country behind the tricolor as Sachin has. The deafening silence when he gets out cheaply is perhaps the loudest thing you would hear in a stadium. That he has had to shoulder the expectation of a billion people for such a long time, where he literally swayed the mood of a whole nation is a standing testimony to the greatness of this man. Failure was not an option.

It has been a pleasure to watch sachin play. India was a nation that was finally finding its feet in the international arena and it needed a hero to identify with. Sachin was just that. Fiercely competetive yet apallingly humble. A man who seemed almost serene as he tore apart attacks all over the world. What is perhaps most astonishing about him as an individual his almost ascetic denial towards indulgence, whether in controversies or outside the off stump. Not for him the artistic rage of a brian lara or the showmanship of a shane warne. Yet his presence is perhaps felt most on a cricket field than anybody else.

My favorite sachin shot might shock most people. Usually it is the unfinished on drive back past the bowler or that searing back foot punch through extra cover, but my favorite sachin stroke is his forward defensive. Elbow high, eyes right over the ball, the body beautifully balanced as the ball meets the meat. To me he is the greatest technician of this era. Symmetry is often a common factor in all works of genius and sachin is the epitome of batting perfection. Never has he looked ungainly, not even when getting out.

Anyone who has a finer understanding of the game or played it at a competitive level will know that the hallmark of a good player is his backfoot play. This is where tendulkar has been supreme. Hitting the ball on the rise, of the backfoot and into the gaps with surgical precision comes to him naturally like breathing does to us. He has played some mighty fine innings and it is really hard to pick any favorites. But one that immediately comes to mind is his unbelievable 97 against pakistan at centurion at the world cup 03'. He cut and drove with such panache that even the opposition might have felt obliged at watching that innings. That day he was unstoppable. You just had to sit back and relish what was on offer. Uppercutting shoaib and ondriving wasim. Here was a man who understood his game so well that the opposition had no answer. So often the intirgues of life are best answered by an honest assessment of one's own self and sachin showed us that day that he had indeed become the Jedi master that everyone expected he would be.

One can only wonder in utter amazement what the little master could produce next. A world cup swan song farewell would not be so bad. Having witnessed the single mindedness and constancy of his purpose, you wouldn't bet against it. The game would be poorer when he finally calls it a day. But till it lasts, let us enjoy the phenomenon that is Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar.

The lost art.

I shall try and not be cliche when i attempt to speak about cricket.So much for a start.
What worries me most about the modern game is that batting as an art has taken a severe blow.
The ease with which runs are scored in the modern game is not so much a worry as the way they are scored.
In the good old days Opening the batting was considered a specialist job.Leaving the ball outside the off stump and leaving on length were often and indicator of the ability of a batsman.A quick look at the modern openers around the world is enough to reflect that change.The sehwags and langers have taken over from the boycs and sunny era and bowlers seem to have become a mere accessory to the game.
Only recently during englands tour of pakistan as i watched afridi dismantle matthew hoggard so ruthlessly, it descended upon me that swing bowling is not so much of a weapon if you do not care to play straight.
Down the track he danced and sent the cherry flying high and handsome(there's cliche) into the stands.
Compare the same to a sachin special. A 7-2 offside field.ball pitches just short of a good length and angling away .The batsman ,nimble footed , moves on to the backfoot stands on his toes and punches the ball through extracover with the blade following through in the direction of the ball as the ball goes screaming through to the fence and not a fielder moves.
In that I hope I have sufficiently expressed the agony that the true connoiseur of the game is put to.
Dont know about the uncertainities but the game seems to be losing glory.