The Final Waltz of the Little Cherub

[Anonymous]

So, here we are….. after more than two decades, nay, a quarter century…..we are taking the liberty to “discuss / share an opinion” on the Cricketing Genius.

While Sachin walked into the sunset of his career, still focused as usual, in his stride and oblivious to the deafeningly thunderous applause in his favorite cricketing cauldron, his last proving ground, his own backyard portal, I would have loved to be one of the thousand fans in the stadium, obviously in the Tendular stand and watch his final Swansong. I would not be surprised if he would still look up to the heavens one more time before he crosses that boundary line to say “Thanks Dad”, pay his obeisance to the crowd who has loved him, cherished him, even booed him off and yet followed him with religious fanatism. A true hero (not the Bambaiya bollywood chikna munda)… who really inspired and united the nation and made us believe in ourselves…….made us believe and proved that winning is possible.. Much to the delight of the cricketing fans, the Little Master did not betray them and created another magnum opus with his swansong

His solution to the game, if you think about it, is beautifully simple. The batting crease is his sanctuary from fame. Bat in hand, the conductor of events, he could escape the soap opera of his own life. Not one specific memory of Tendulkar stands out – not a moment of virtuoso brilliance, instead a sign of acceptance, perhaps even reconciliation. His batting is based on the purest principles: perfect balance, economy of movement, precision in stroke-making, and that intangible quality given only to geniuses – anticipation. If he doesn’t have a signature stroke – the upright, back-foot punch comes close. Tendulkar’s considerable achievements seem greater still when looked at in the light of the burden of expectations he has had to bear from his adoring but somewhat unreasonable followers, who have been prone to regard anything less than a hundred in each innings as a failure. But then, he only formed us that habit! Tendulkar remained a constant because he stayed constant – whether successful and prolific, or even, like in the last 18 months, in the throes of an almighty painful struggle. Throughout his career, he retained an attention for detail, and it came through – whether for the game situation or the bigger picture. Somehow in his own unique way, he communicated an essential, undiluted reverence for his sport – even to those who thought they weren’t paying attention. In the last 24 years, amid the records and runs and the chanting, his invisible footprints in the game have acted as markers on the road best travelled in pursuit of a calling. Inevitable success comes not from talent but the love, almost entirely passionate, the drive and more importantly, the discipline. Consistency of performance outlives everything else. On tough days, never give up – Shake hands – Share – the trade over the tricks. It always works; it always worked. Every time….and he did that consistently just like his willow.

Answering back to critics when he became more senior and conservative in his batting approach, he one said, “Change is part of our lives, and as you get older, you try to reach your destination in safer ways. When someone throws stones at you, you turn them into milestones”. The naughty devilish smile on the curly haired cherub was still present – but this time, with maturity. One could feel that sense of responsibility but yet conveying the parental wisdom – maybe showered from up above by his father.

Immortals cannot cite age as their excuse and therefore swansongs must scale the summits of their pomp. Several glowing tributes will follow, may not even end for some time….. Should the commentators call every one-day, T20, IPL or even Test match century, a TON-dular ??? !!!!!. Or should we forever retire his famous “10” jersey????!! What about that bat??!! If the game of cricket has an Excalibur, it is that piece of willows which shredded world class bowlers with respectful control and yet total disdain??!!! Oh well…the beat will go on and on and on……. However, as the legend approached the inevitable twilight of his frolicsome youth, I too loved wholeheartedly to join the millions on that day not just screaming “Saacchhiinn”, Saacchhiinnn”… Rather, I would say…. He is an Indian, he fought for India and …won.. So, honor and cherish the fallable hero; a man not so much invincible as invulnerable, honor the human being in him but cherish the world’s “Little Master”……cherish the wonderful memories of a career that has bonded this land of million mutinies and diversities in a thrall and mystical spell /trance for nearly two decades. …….just now promoted……….to that rare rank : — Certified Immortal – but still very much human.

I have often been touched, when gazing at champion competitors, by a sensation of awe. There is so much they do with ease that the rest of us can never hope to accomplish even with the most prolonged, dedicated and scientific preparation. But the great thing here is that this awe does not leave us feeling belittled or inadequate. On the contrary, the wonder and marvel at what one of our fellow human beings can do is life-enhancing: the intricate coordination of mind and matter, strength and speed, the welding together of eyes, feet and hands in the heat of the moment, all driven by a single competitive purpose, yet somehow making a momentary thing of beauty, a joy forever. In a sense, the joy of Tendulkar comes unadulterated. The awe he inspires belongs to no culture, carries no nationalist overtones, and is at once both intimately personal and transparently universal. So thank you, Sachin, for giving me as many of those delicious awe-filled moments as any sporting genius of my time. Tendulkar is one of those narrow stratums of elite sports stars who people will clamor and even make great sacrifices to watch, regardless of their national identity. If you care for cricket, you must love Sachin (and yes, that feeling can be found across Pakistan as well). Even if you want to hate him, you have to love him first. So farewell to the “Little Master”, and farewell to a player not only worshipped for his venerable cricketing abilities but universally admired for the way in which he played the game, both on and off the field.

When the final history of cricket is written – for our purposes here, let’s call it the age of Tendulkar – his period has been seen as one of deep change and constant uncertainty. Yet throughout this upheaval, Sachin has adapted and endured. He has found answers to every new question – his 49 ODI hundreds are arguably the more remarkable achievement than his 51 Test centuries. And yet he has also belonged to the great, timeless tradition of pure batsmanship. Modern and classical at the same time, Tendulkar has been a cricketer for every stage. Change is constant, but the pace of change is wildly inconstant. Some lives are played out in the context of continuity and stability; others must adapt to dizzying change and upheaval. Endurance, perseverance and resilience are all relative concepts: standing your ground is much harder when the sands are shifting all around you. It is a truism that he has faced a unique burden of expectation. During the course of his astonishing and scarcely believable career, Sachin prevailed because he always understood the art and science required to find the perfect balance. The subliminal link between the “Little Master” and a resurgent India provided yet another dimension of pressure and expectation. So in celebrating Tendulkar’s achievements, we are partly paying testament to the weight he has carried. When India won the 2011 World Cup final, Virat Kohli captured a deep truth: “He has carried the burden of our nation on his shoulders for the past 21 years. So it is time that we carried him.” Despite all this – all the many ways in which Tendulkar is admirable and impressive and inspiring – I have found it very difficult to gather together my thoughts about his retirement. My feelings about his career will not settle into a shape or a narrative. I can list the feats and accolades, but the personality that achieved them eludes me. When I describe him as an enigma, I feel a failure on my part. Can I, will I, be able to find the man underneath the enigma ??. I regret that I cannot. But there is a strange paradox at the core of Tendulkar’s career. The more he has played, the less we can see the real man. Now I realize that becoming a machine is much easier than being turned into a cricketing God – as Tendulkar has been. Perhaps he had no choice but to go along with what a billion people yearned for him to be. But I cannot avoid the feeling that the God has gradually displaced the man. I try to understand men and women because Gods leave me cold. Perhaps that is why, when I write about Tendulkar, for all my admiration and awe in the face of his great achievements, the words will not come.

To put it in the context of the words of the billions of Indian fans: Now, only humans will play cricket! OR Cricke_ will be incomplete without Tendulkar. It remains debatable if we can only call him the Shenshah of Cricket or the Shenshah of the ‘dils’ of the billions of cricketing fans all over the world. Yet somewhere I still get a glimpse of a little curly haired Tendlya who just wants to play; play cricket and have fun. Is that too much to ask for??… I shall let you (and the billions of Indians) be the judge and decide….. Although somehow, I already know the unanimous answer. After all…… It is not just the talent he was born with, but what he did with it.

Humbly put….. call me a cricketing fan or simply crazy !

[Ketan Trivedi]

surely a cricketing buff OR as he put it… a simply crazy cricketing fan !!
However, enjoyed an insight not because it was a hero-worship. Rather a reaffirmation of the thought that discipline and (passionate) dedication can scale the unachievable /unthinkable. Also confirms the purity of childlike (not childish) heart at any age.

[Rahul Thakur]

Deeply thoughtful yet a very delightful read!!
I loved all quotes; but below are few that I never heard before:

“Change is part of our lives, and as you get older, you try to reach your destination in safer ways. When someone throws stones at you, you turn them into milestones”
“Cricke_ will be incomplete without Tendulkar”
“..Tondulkar”

I was die hard fan of Sachin (up until 2003 WC); but over recent years I started to turn into a disbeliever (IPL over T20 WC etc, not accepting the facts that it’s time to pass on the baton); but this article provides a fresh perspective about his child like fascination towards Cricket, which can explains lot of his actions in the recent past!

[Author]

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