Sachin Tendulkar's record breaking innings yesterday was simply magnificent. iSporter Akshay Iyer salutes the 'Master Blaster'.
Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar has made a habit of breaking records and going places where no other batsman has gone before. Be it the number of international runs, international centuries et al, Tendulkar has them all in his kitty.
And, on February 24, 2010; Tendulkar gave his fans yet another reason to celebrate when he became the first batsman in the history of one-day internationals to score a double century. In the process, Tendulkar also obliterated the previous record for highest score in an ODI innings – 194 – which was held jointly by former Pakistan batsman Saeed Anwar and Zimbabwe’s Charles Coventry.
Tendulkar had come close to breaking the record twice earlier – with scores of 186* against New Zealand at Hyderabad in November 1999 and 163 retired hurt against the same opposition at Christchurch in March 2009.
The master batsman that he is, Tendulkar must have believed in his heart that one day he would go on to break the record. Tendulkar has been in sparkling form over the last 12 months, and his double century in the Gwalior one-dayer, was the third ton against South Africa in the current series, including the two Test matches.
Tendulkar’s opening partner Virender Sehwag failed at Gwalior, but the ‘Little Master’ found an able ally in Dinesh Karthik, as the pair added 194 runs for the second wicket at a fast clip. Tendulkar hammered the South African bowlers all over the park in Gwalior. The Protea bowlers didn’t do themselves any favours either as their lengths varied from very short balls to full tosses, all of which were easily put away by the champion batsman.
After Karthik’s dismissal, Tendulkar got good support from Yusuf Pathan and captain MS Dhoni; but the story of the Indian innings and indeed the match was all about Sachin’s stupendous knock. Tendulkar’s 200* was also the perfect example of how to pace a one-day innings. He did hit 25 boundaries (yet another record in ODIs) and 3 sixes, but his was not only a chanceless knock, but was also proof enough that mindless slogging is not required to score quick runs in the shorter formats of the game. This was a vintage Tendulkar innings as he made South Africa’s stand-in captain Jacques Kallis and his bowlers scratch their heads in unison to find ways to stop the master batsman. But, there was no stopping Tendulkar in Gwalior and it appeared that time itself had ceased to exist.
Another important aspect of Tendulkar’s unbeaten 200 was the fitness and speed he showed as he carried his bat. Though Tendulkar cramped up during his knock, he chose not to ask for a runner, and continued to sprint between the wickets to convert ones into twos and twos into threes. Tendulkar celebrates his 37th birthday on April 24, but seeing him run, one could be forgiven for thinking that he was 25 or 26!
Tendulkar has always been a modest and humble person despite all the success that he has seen in his 20 years of international cricket. Tendulkar displayed those traits again after his record-breaking knock as he not only acknowledged his teammates, but also had words of praise for coach Gary Kirsten for moulding the team into a winning unit since taking charge.
I have been a huge fan of South African cricket since their re-entry into international cricket, and have wanted the Proteas to win even when they take on India. However, the one constant through these years, has been wanting Tendulkar to do well even at my favourite team’s expense. Though I squirmed watching Tendulkar treat Dale Steyn and Wayne Parnell as schoolboy bowlers; I also hoped that the master batsman would go on and break the record. And, when he did, the Tendulkar fan inside me took over. That is the magic of Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar!
For all that he has achieved, Tendulkar still has some more landmarks to play for – a triple century in Tests, a century of international centuries, and helping India win the 2011 World Cup. With the hunger and passion that he still has for the game after all these years and all his accomplishments, don’t be surprised if Tendulkar continues to set record after record.
Cricket has seen many great batsmen including Sir Don Bradman, Sir Garfield Sobers, Gavaskar, Brian Lara, Steve Waugh and many more; but the fact that Tendulkar continues to play consistently in his 21st year of international cricket and has carried the hopes of a billion plus people for most of his career, it is time this champion is anointed as the greatest ever batsman in the history of the game.
After all, it takes the greatest of them all to bring an entire nation to a halt whenever he strides into the middle with his bat. It also takes a special, special talent to be seen as a role model by people around the world and be respected not only by his peers but also other sportspersons from across the world.
Let us all stop asking when Tendulkar is going to retire, and consider ourselves extremely fortunate that we are seeing a genius and a legend do his stuff by entertaining all his fans and making life hell for opposition skippers and bowlers alike. There is only one Tendulkar, and he is bloody magnificent!
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