Sachin Tendulkar

Though the Mumbai Indians lost their first outing in the Airtel Champions League T20 to the South African Highveld Lions, but the score of 69 that Sachin Tendulkar made indeed is a threatening reminder to the cricketing fraternity that indeed there still is quite a fire left in his belly. Sachin is going to leave his stamp on the World Cup tournament in 2011 and probably then think about bowing out in style.

Even though it is more than twenty years since he made his debut in the cricketing arena, his is the back that the opposite captain would like to see at the earliest, as if he stays then he with his sheer presence alters the course of the game beyond the imagination of the opposite team. There indeed are two motivations that are egging him on, though his body is giving the warning signals, one of them are to play in the 2011 World Cup, while other is to be the only player in the world of cricket who has played 200 test matches. The day he achieves these records would probably be the day when he could hang his boot with pride and satisfaction.

From the time when he made his debut down under in Australia in 1991-92, when he still was in his teens he stamped his authority dismissing bowlers of the likes of Craig McDermott and Marv Hughes with utter contempt. It needs to be underlined that this was the ground where the likes of Viv Richards could not measure up the Aussie pace, but from then on, whenever Sachin bats against the Aussies in any form of the game the Aussies do not know what could hit them, as he had demonstrated in the Autralasia Cup in Sharjah against the Aussie team led by Steve Waugh, arguably one of the most successful Aussie skipper.

Now as he is nearing retirement a whiff of controversy has started building around him. It is to do with his non-interference in the affairs of cricket in the country, unlike his peers who are holding one important post or the other and guiding the destiny of the game of cricket. Would he agree to change his views and lend his experience to cricket administration? Cricket indeed would be immensely benefited if he agrees to it, and may be by the time the occasion demands it, he would rise to it.

By: Suman Rai

Tags: Airtel Champions League T20, Cricket, Cricket World Cup, Indian Sports, Sachin Tendulkar, Sports, Sports India