When they spoke about Sachin Tendulkar. part-2

Hashim Amla:
Nothing bad can happen to us if we're on a plane in India with Sachin Tendulkar on it. Hashim Amla, the South African batsman, reassures himself as he boards a flight.
Shane Warne:
"Sachin Tendulkar is, in my time, the best player without doubt - daylight second, Brian Lara third."
Shane Warne delights the Indian press with his views on batting greats of this era
Shahrukh Khan:
"Maybe the country doesn't pray for me like they do for Sachin Tendulkar, but I know I'm on a good wicket as well. "
Martina Navratilova:
"Sachin was so focused. He never looked like getting out. He was batting with single-minded devotion. It was truly remarkable. It was a lesson."
Tennis legend joins the Sachin Tendulkar fan club after watching him bat at Sydney.
Alistair Campbell:
After loosing to India in the Coca Cola Cup final at Sharjah in November '98
"He has everything a top batsman needs. Tendulkar is a classic example of a player being so good that his age is an irrelevance"
David Boon:
"Technically he stands out as the best because of his ability to increase the pace at will"
Cricket Historian Vasant Raiji:
"I have always felt C. K. Nayadu was the best. I now think sachin has the honour of being the most outstanding batsman of all time."
Steve Waugh:
"You take Don Bradman away and he is next up I reckon."
Adam Hollioke:
"In an over I can bowl six different balls. But then Sachin looks at me with a sort of gentle arrogance down the pitch as if to say 'Can you bowl me another one?'"
Tony Greig:
He is cool, has magnificent temperament, and is so mature you tend to forget his age. I can't think of any other example of a player who has so dominated the world before the age of 25.
Allan Border: (after India won the Coca-Cola cup )
"Hell, if he stayed, even at 11 an over he would have got it."
Ajay Jadeja
"I can't dream of an innings like that. He exists where we can't."
David Gower
"In the last session in Nagpur, when the Indian chase was still on, Tendulkar hit a reverse sweep, an orthodox sweep and a lofted cover drive to (Ian) Blackwell. They were all exquisite cricket shots. To play those shots deliberately in such quick succession, off almost similar deliveries, was genius. That was a little jewel, just those 3-4 minutes.
"It reminds you how very few people are special. It was a case of great thinking and good technique."
Gavaskar..back in 1988 to tom alter
I sat in the office of Sportsweek magazine with that same Sunil Gavaskar. Ayaz Memon and I were listening to Gavaskar in one of his rare, priceless moods. The ?Little Master? was delving deep into his own experience, his own genius, and bringing forth pearls of wisdom as sudden, and as effective, as his straight- drives back past the bowler. Then Gavaskar came up with the following statement (remember, this was in 1988, when Dilip Vengsarkar was about to become captain of India): "The two best batsmen in Bombay today are Vengsarkar and Sachin Tendulkar." Full stop. End of statement. The ball crosses the boundary-line underneath the sight- screen.
Desmond Haynes
In terms of technique and compactness, Tendulkar is the best: Desmond Haynes.
Mark Taylor
He's a phenomenon. We have to be switched on when he plays allow him no boundries, for then he doesn't stop
Wasim
"Cricketers like Sachin come once in a lifetime and I am privileged he played in my time,"
"Tuzhe pata hai tune kiska catch chhoda hai?" Wasim Akram to Abdul Razzaq when the latter dropped Sachin's catch.
Allan Donald
His shot selection is superb, he just lines you up and can make you look very silly. Everything is right in his technique and judgement. There isn't a fault there. He is also a lovely guy, and over the years I've enjoyed some interesting chats with him… Sachin is in a different class to Lara as a professional cricketer. He is a model cricketer, and despite the intolerable pressures he faces back home, he remains a really nice guy… Sachin is also the best batsman in the world, pulling away from Brain Lara every year…
Anil Kumble -he's shy little gentleman
I am very privileged to have played with him and seen most of the runs that he has scored. I am also extremely happy to have shared the same dressing room... He is a very reserved person and generally keeps to himself. He is very determined, committed and doesn't show too many emotions. He just goes about doing his job.
The thing I admire most about this man is his poise. The way he moves, elegantly without ever looking out of place in any condition or company, suggests his pedigree. I remember he had once come to New Delhi in the 1990s to collect his Arjuna Award (India's highest award to its top sportspersons) and he asked me if I would attend the function. He is a very sensitive human being….

Sometimes you feel he really hasn't felt the kind of competition in the world his talent deserves. I would have loved to see him perform against top quality cricketers of the previous generation. It would really have brought out the best in him.
Greame Pollock
Tendulkar is the best in the world at the moment. Why I've always liked him is that batsmen tend to be negative at times and I think batting is not about not getting out - it is to play positively. I think you got to take it to the bowlers and Sachin is one such player. When you do so, you change the game, you change bowlers because they suddenly start bowling badly because they are under pressure.
Ian Chappell

Whenever I see Sachin play I am reminded of the Graeme Pollock quote of Cricket being a 'see the ball, hit the ball game.' He hits the ball as if it's there to be hit.
Ravi Shastri:
"We always knew that Sachin Tendulkar is a great cricketer, but after the Coca-Cola Cup here, we have seen the birth of a legend. I can't think of anybody who has batted more authoritatively in one day cricket for India, or even in the world except for Vivian Richards."
Navjot Sidhu:

"His mind is like a computer. He stores data on bowlers and knows where they are going to pitch the ball."
Mark Taylor:
"We did not lose to a team called India...we lost to a man called Sachin" - Mark Taylor, during the test match in Chennai (1997)
Dravid

Playing in the same team as Sachin is a huge honour. His balance of mind, shrewd judgement, modesty and, above all, his technical brilliance make him my all-time hero... You can't get a more complete cricketer than Sachin. He has everything that a cricketer needs to have.

As a batsman, he has the technique, the hunger and the desire for runs. He always contributes with the bat as well as on the field. He also is a good fielder and bowls when needs. You really can't ask for a better cricketer than Sachin... He is a terrific person and has handled pressure brilliantly. He has handled his success very well and doesn't have any airs about him. He is a great guy and very good team man. In his heart of hearts, he is a very simple and down to earth person.
Azhar

The more I see him, the more I want to see him.
Sunil Gavaskar:
India's fortune will depend on how many runs the little champion scores. There is no doubt Tendulkar is the real thing
Harsha bhogle
if sachin plays well..india sleeps well
SOURAV GANGULY

The thing I like most about Sachin is his intensity. After being in the game for so long, he still has the same desire to do well for India in any international match.I tell you what, this man is a legend.
Kris Srikkanth

"He is the only match-winning batsman we have"
Ranatunga

"You get him out and half the battle is won"
Andy Flower:

There are 2 kind of batsmen in the world. One Sachin Tendulkar. Two all the others.
Martin Crowe:
A flighted full toss on Leg stump by spinner. any other will play this shot on leg side by pull shot or glance or flick. but sachin made a space and played a perfect cover drive for four runs.
Martin Crowe (New Zealand's ever best bats man) said " the shot played on this ball is only possible for GOD Of CRICKET "
Shane Warne:

You have to decide for yourself whether you're bowling well or not. He's going to hit you for fours and sixes anyway. Kasprowicz has a superior story. During the Bangalore Test, frustrated, he went to Dennis Lillee and asked, "Mate, do you see any weaknesses?" Lillee replied, "No Michael, as long as you walk off with your pride that's all you can do".
Rudy Kortzen

"I never get tired during umpiring whenever sachin is on crease"

sunny gavaskar

This was after a wonderful century by sachin(in england i guess in a test match..not sure)
Sunny: The other day i was just trying to think of a bowler who can go through sachin's defenses when sachin is in total defense. I am sorry but i could not think of even one name who could do that. If sachin decides he doesnt want to give away his wicket, he wont. be it any bowler in the world.
Cheers to Sachin...
PONTING

Ponting make comparisons btn sachin,Lara& jayasuriya.
Sachin is the best ever batsman in the world. He is brilliant in his technique. He is always hungry for runs.Sachin is better than Lara in his techniques & thats why he is No.1 among others.On his day,Lara wiil be more destructive. He is the only man 2 fight for west indies. Jayasuriya also played gr8 knocks 4 his team. But compared 2 them Sachin is the BEST
Pradeep Mandhani ..a Photographer

“Barely two hours after landing in Johannesburg on the 1992-93 tour to South Africa, the team was to visit Tolstoy Farm, Mahatma Gandhi's first Satyagrahi Commune founded in 1910. It was situated 35 kms from Jo'burg and most of the Indian players showed little interest, longing to rest in the hotel after the long flight. But Tendulkar, still a teenager, looked keen and hungry to learn more about Gandhi. His volley of questions to the guide reflected his national pride.”
NKP Salve, former Union Minister

This was when he was accused of ball tempering

“Sachin cannot cheat. He is to cricket what (Mahatma) Gandhiji was to politics. It's clear discrimination.”
Allan Donald
"In my several years of international cricket, Tendulkar remains the best batsman I have ever bowled to. It's been a pleasure to bowl at the master batsman even though one hasn't always emerged with credit from the engagements."
Allan Donald

"During our team meetings, we often speak about the importance of the first 12 balls to Tendulkar. If you get him then you can thank your stars, otherwise it could mean that tough times lie ahead."
Saurav Ganguly:
SACHIN MADE 9 CENTURIES IN ONE YEAR BUT MANY CRICKETER DIDNOT MAKE 9 CENTURIES IN THEIR WHOLE CARRIER.
Ricky Ponting:
“Sachin is the most complete batsman I have seen. His technique is so good and he has played well in all conditions. To have 41 one-day international tons shows what an appetite he has for scoring runs.”
Harsha Bhogle:
There's no better sight on the cricket field than watch Tendulkar bat.
Rev David Shepherd.

"Sachin Tendulkar! If he isn't the best player in the world, I want to see the best player in the world".


if sachin plays well..india sleeps well
SOURAV GANGULY

The thing I like most about Sachin is his intensity. After being in the game for so long, he still has the same desire to do well for India in any international match.I tell you what, this man is a legend.
Kris Srikkanth

"He is the only match-winning batsman we have"
Ranatunga

"You get him out and half the battle is won"
Andy Flower:

There are 2 kind of batsmen in the world. One Sachin Tendulkar. Two all the others.
Martin Crowe:
A flighted full toss on Leg stump by spinner. any other will play this shot on leg side by pull shot or glance or flick. but sachin made a space and played a perfect cover drive for four runs.
Martin Crowe (New Zealand's ever best bats man) said " the shot played on this ball is only possible for GOD Of CRICKET "
Shane Warne:

You have to decide for yourself whether you're bowling well or not. He's going to hit you for fours and sixes anyway. Kasprowicz has a superior story. During the Bangalore Test, frustrated, he went to Dennis Lillee and asked, "Mate, do you see any weaknesses?" Lillee replied, "No Michael, as long as you walk off with your pride that's all you can do".
Rudy Kortzen

"I never get tired during umpiring whenever sachin is on crease"
Sunny Gavaskar

This was after a wonderful century by sachin(in england i guess in a test match..not sure)
Sunny: The other day i was just trying to think of a bowler who can go through sachin's defenses when sachin is in total defense. I am sorry but i could not think of even one name who could do that. If sachin decides he doesnt want to give away his wicket, he wont. be it any bowler in the world.
Cheers to Sachin...
PONTING

Ponting make comparisons btn sachin,Lara& jayasuriya.
Sachin is the best ever batsman in the world. He is brilliant in his technique. He is always hungry for runs.Sachin is better than Lara in his techniques & thats why he is No.1 among others.On his day,Lara wiil be more destructive. He is the only man 2 fight for west indies. Jayasuriya also played gr8 knocks 4 his team. But compared 2 them Sachin is the BEST
Pradeep Mandhani ..a Photographer

“Barely two hours after landing in Johannesburg on the 1992-93 tour to South Africa, the team was to visit Tolstoy Farm, Mahatma Gandhi's first Satyagrahi Commune founded in 1910. It was situated 35 kms from Jo'burg and most of the Indian players showed little interest, longing to rest in the hotel after the long flight. But Tendulkar, still a teenager, looked keen and hungry to learn more about Gandhi. His volley of questions to the guide reflected his national pride.”
NKP Salve, former Union Minister

This was when he was accused of ball tempering

“Sachin cannot cheat. He is to cricket what (Mahatma) Gandhiji was to politics. It's clear discrimination.”
Allan Donald
"In my several years of international cricket, Tendulkar remains the best batsman I have ever bowled to. It's been a pleasure to bowl at the master batsman even though one hasn't always emerged with credit from the engagements."
Allan Donald

"During our team meetings, we often speak about the importance of the first 12 balls to Tendulkar. If you get him then you can thank your stars, otherwise it could mean that tough times lie ahead."
Saurav Ganguly:
SACHIN MADE 9 CENTURIES IN ONE YEAR BUT MANY CRICKETER DIDNOT MAKE 9 CENTURIES IN THEIR WHOLE CARRIER.
Ricky Ponting:
“Sachin is the most complete batsman I have seen. His technique is so good and he has played well in all conditions. To have 41 one-day international tons shows what an appetite he has for scoring runs.”
Harsha Bhogle:
There's no better sight on the cricket field than watch Tendulkar bat.
Rev David Shepherd.

"Sachin Tendulkar! If he isn't the best player in the world, I want to see the best player in the world".

"In my several years of international cricket, Tendulkar remains the best batsman I have ever bowled to. It's been a pleasure to bowl at the master batsman even though one hasn't always emerged with credit from the engagements."
Allan Donald

"During our team meetings, we often speak about the importance of the first 12 balls to Tendulkar. If you get him then you can thank your stars, otherwise it could mean that tough times lie ahead."
Saurav Ganguly:
SACHIN MADE 9 CENTURIES IN ONE YEAR BUT MANY CRICKETER DIDNOT MAKE 9 CENTURIES IN THEIR WHOLE CARRIER.
Ricky Ponting:
“Sachin is the most complete batsman I have seen. His technique is so good and he has played well in all conditions. To have 41 one-day international tons shows what an appetite he has for scoring runs.”
Harsha Bhogle:
There's no better sight on the cricket field than watch Tendulkar bat.
Rev David Shepherd.

"Sachin Tendulkar! If he isn't the best player in the world, I want to see the best player in the world".

---

When they spoke about Sachin Tendulkar.

Andrew Symonds:
wrote on an aussie t-shirt he autographed specially for Sachin. " To Sachin, the man we all want to be "
Virendra Sehwag:
Both of us have come a long away and it is a great honour that Tendulkar thinks I come close to resembling him as a batsman. It is a great honour, like a dream come true. If I die tomorrow I'll be the happiest man because I played this game because of Tendulkar, and Tendulkar himself saying that I resemble him - there is no bigger compliment than that.
Mathew Hayden:
I have seen GOD , he bats at no.4 for india in Tests.
Ravi Shashtri:
He is someone sent from up there to play cricket and go back.
Mark Taylor:
We did not lose to a team called india...we lost to a man called Sachin.
Brain Lara:
Sachin is a genius , i am a mere mortal!
Barry Richards:
Sachin is crickets GOD
Martin Crowe:
The shot played on this ball is only possible for the GOD of cricket.
Ian Botham:
If someoom the highest peak of the world.
Paul Strang:
What we [zimbabwe] need is 10 tendulkars.
Steve Waugh:
There is no shame losing to such a great player(sachin).
Shane Warne:
I would go to bed having nightmares of sachin dancing down the ground and hitting me for sixes.
Mathew Hayden:
His life seems to be a stillness in a frantic world... [When he goes out to bat], it is beyond chaos - it is a frantic appeal by a nation to one man. The people see him as a God...
Viv Richards:
He is 99.5% Perfect.. I'll pay to watch him play.
Dennis Lillie:
If I had to bowl to Sachin I would bowl with a halmet on. He hits the ball so hard.
Steve Waugh:
After being defeated in the Coca-Cola Cup finals in Sharjah) "It was one of the greatest innings I have ever seen. There is no shame being beaten by such a great player, Sachin is perhaps only next to the Don''
Sir Don Bradman:
I saw him playing on television and was struck by his technique, so I asked my wife to come look at him. Now I never saw myself play, but I feel that this player is playing much the same as I used to play, and she looked at him on Television and said yes, there is a similarity between the two...hi compactness, technique, stroke production... it all seemed to gel! in reference to Sachin Tendulkar.
Michael Kasprowicz:
Don't bowl him bad balls, he hits the good ones for fours."
Shane Warne:
I'll be going to bed having nightmares of Sachin just running down the wicket and belting me back over the head for six. He was unstoppable. I don't think anyone, apart from Don Bradman, is in the same class as Sachin Tendulkar. He is just an amazing player."
Wasim Akram:
Today, he showed the world why he is considered the best batsman around. Some of the shots he played were simply amazing. Earlier, opposing teams used to feel that Sachin's dismissal meant they could win the game. Today, I feel that the Indian players, too, feel this way.
Wasim Akram, after game at Hobart, CUB series, 1999
Brett Lee:
You might pitch a ball on the off stump and think you have bowled a good ball and he walks across and hits it for two behind midwicket. His bat looks so heavy but he just waves it around like it's a toothpick. Brett Lee, on Sachin Tendulkar's batting, 1999
Viv Richards:
I think he is marvellous. I think he will fit in whatever category of Cricket that has been played or will be played, from the first ball that has ever been bowled to the last ball that's going to be. He can play in any era and at any level.
Barry Richards:
Consensus is that Sir Donald Bradman was the best batsman ever to play Cricket. Sir Don did not play One-Day Cricket but if he did, he could easily be Sachin Tendulkar.
BBC Sports:
Beneath the helmet, under that unruly curly hair, inside the cranium, there is something we don't know, something beyond scientific measure. Something that allows him to soar, to roam a territory of sport that, forget us, even those who are gifted enough to play alongside him cannot even fathom. When he goes out to bat, people switch on their television sets and switch off their lives.
Wasim Akram:
"I dont know what to bowl at him. i bowled an inswinger n he drove me thr covers of d front foot. then i bld an outswinger n he again punched thr covers of d backfoot(for tamil fans-dai avan eppadi pottalum adikaranda). he is d toughest batsmen i 've bowled to. he shold live long n score lots of runs, but not against pakistan(smiling) "--LEGENDARY WASIM AKRAM on our own SACHIN on 24th april 2004 on espn Sachin's 30th B day program.(i think) on his knock in 2003 worldcup.
Sunil Gavaskar:
India's fortune will depend on how many runs the little champion scores. There is no doubt Tendulkar is the real thing.
Richie Benaud:
He has defined cricket in his fabulous, impeccable manner. He is to batting what Shane Warne is to bowling.
Geoffrey Boycott:
Technically, you can't fault Sachin. Seam or spin, fast or slow nothing is a problem.
Eddie Barlow:
He is Sachin Tendulkar. I hope he stays Sachin Tendulkar. We need a new player, a player in his own way. He has a technique which is the hallmark of a great player. Everything indicates that he will be a great player and I am sure he will prove me right. Reminds me of Barry Richards.
Greg Chappell:
He is a perfectly balanced batsman and knows perfectly well when to attack and when to play defensive cricket. He has developed the ability to treat bowlers all over the world with contempt and can destroy any attack with utmost ease.
Abdul Qadir:
I Was fielding in the covers Tendulkar came out to bat in his debut Test at Karachi. I still remember Waqar Younis was at his peak form at that time. Tendulkar tried to drive Waqar through the covers off his very first ball in Test cricket but was beaten all ends up. But I walked to captain Imran Khan and told him 'this kid looks very good' and Imran agree with me.
Sir Garfield Sobers:
I have watched a lot of Tendulkar and we have spoken to each other a lot. He has it in him to be among the very best.
Peter Roebuck:
Sometime back I had written a piece that said that Sachin's the master and Lara a genius with his head high up somewhere. That's it!
Jeff Thompson:
Sachin is an attacker. He has much more power than Sunny. He wants to be the one to set the pace. He has to be on top. That's the buzz about him.
Ian Healy:
Tendulkar is the most comouncy pitch with Hughes, McDermott and Whitney gunning for him he only had 60-odd when No 11 came in. I've seen him against Warne too.
Mike Coward:
Sachin's the best. I've had this view since I saw him score that hundred in Sydney in 1992. He's the most composed batsman I've ever seen.
Hashim Amla:
Nothing bad can happen to us if we're on a plane in India with Sachin Tendulkar on it. Hashim Amla, the South African batsman, reassures himself as he boards a flight.
Shane Warne:
"Sachin Tendulkar is, in my time, the best player without doubt - daylight second, Brian Lara third."
Shane Warne delights the Indian press with his views on batting greats of this era
Shahrukh Khan:
"Maybe the country doesn't pray for me like they do for Sachin Tendulkar, but I know I'm on a good wicket as well. "
Martina Navratilova:
"Sachin was so focused. He never looked like getting out. He was batting with single-minded devotion. It was truly remarkable. It was a lesson."
Tennis legend joins the Sachin Tendulkar fan club after watching him bat at Sydney.
Alistair Campbell:
After loosing to India in the Coca Cola Cup final at Sharjah in November '98
"He has everything a top batsman needs. Tendulkar is a classic example of a player being so good that his age is an irrelevance"
David Boon:
"Technically he stands out as the best because of his ability to increase the pace at will"
Cricket Historian Vasant Raiji:
"I have always felt C. K. Nayadu was the best. I now think sachin has the honour of being the most outstanding batsman of all time."
Steve Waugh:
"You take Don Bradman away and he is next up I reckon."
Adam Hollioke:
"In an over I can bowl six different balls. But then Sachin looks at me with a sort of gentle arrogance down the pitch as if to say 'Can you bowl me another one?'"
Tony Greig:
He is cool, has magnificent temperament, and is so mature you tend to forget his age. I can't think of any other example of a player who has so dominated the world before the age of 25.
Allan Border: (after India won the Coca-Cola cup )
"Hell, if he stayed, even at 11 an over he would have got it."
Ajay Jadeja
"I can't dream of an innings like that. He exists where we can't."
David Gower
"In the last session in Nagpur, when the Indian chase was still on, Tendulkar hit a reverse sweep, an orthodox sweep and a lofted cover drive to (Ian) Blackwell. They were all exquisite cricket shots. To play those shots deliberately in such quick succession, off almost similar deliveries, was genius. That was a little jewel, just those 3-4 minutes.
"It reminds you how very few people are special. It was a case of great thinking and good technique."
Gavaskar..back in 1988 to tom alter
I sat in the office of Sportsweek magazine with that same Sunil Gavaskar. Ayaz Memon and I were listening to Gavaskar in one of his rare, priceless moods. The ?Little Master? was delving deep into his own experience, his own genius, and bringing forth pearls of wisdom as sudden, and as effective, as his straight- drives back past the bowler. Then Gavaskar came up with the following statement (remember, this was in 1988, when Dilip Vengsarkar was about to become captain of India): "The two best batsmen in Bombay today are Vengsarkar and Sachin Tendulkar." Full stop. End of statement. The ball crosses the boundary-line underneath the sight- screen.
Desmond Haynes
In terms of technique and compactness, Tendulkar is the best: Desmond Haynes.
Mark Taylor
He's a phenomenon. We have to be switched on when he plays allow him no boundries, for then he doesn't stop
Wasim
"Cricketers like Sachin come once in a lifetime and I am privileged he played in my time,"
"Tuzhe pata hai tune kiska catch chhoda hai?" Wasim Akram to Abdul Razzaq when the latter dropped Sachin's catch.
Allan Donald
His shot selection is superb, he just lines you up and can make you look very silly. Everything is right in his technique and judgement. There isn't a fault there. He is also a lovely guy, and over the years I've enjoyed some interesting chats with him… Sachin is in a different class to Lara as a professional cricketer. He is a model cricketer, and despite the intolerable pressures he faces back home, he remains a really nice guy… Sachin is also the best batsman in the world, pulling away from Brain Lara every year…
Anil Kumble -he's shy little gentleman
I am very privileged to have played with him and seen most of the runs that he has scored. I am also extremely happy to have shared the same dressing room... He is a very reserved person and generally keeps to himself. He is very determined, committed and doesn't show too many emotions. He just goes about doing his job.
The thing I admire most about this man is his poise. The way he moves, elegantly without ever looking out of place in any condition or company, suggests his pedigree. I remember he had once come to New Delhi in the 1990s to collect his Arjuna Award (India's highest award to its top sportspersons) and he asked me if I would attend the function. He is a very sensitive human being….

Sometimes you feel he really hasn't felt the kind of competition in the world his talent deserves. I would have loved to see him perform against top quality cricketers of the previous generation. It would really have brought out the best in him.
Greame Pollock
Tendulkar is the best in the world at the moment. Why I've always liked him is that batsmen tend to be negative at times and I think batting is not about not getting out - it is to play positively. I think you got to take it to the bowlers and Sachin is one such player. When you do so, you change the game, you change bowlers because they suddenly start bowling badly because they are under pressure.
Ian Chappell

Whenever I see Sachin play I am reminded of the Graeme Pollock quote of Cricket being a 'see the ball, hit the ball game.' He hits the ball as if it's there to be hit.
Ravi Shastri:
"We always knew that Sachin Tendulkar is a great cricketer, but after the Coca-Cola Cup here, we have seen the birth of a legend. I can't think of anybody who has batted more authoritatively in one day cricket for India, or even in the world except for Vivian Richards."
Navjot Sidhu:

"His mind is like a computer. He stores data on bowlers and knows where they are going to pitch the ball."
Mark Taylor:
"We did not lose to a team called India...we lost to a man called Sachin" - Mark Taylor, during the test match in Chennai (1997)
Dravid

Playing in the same team as Sachin is a huge honour. His balance of mind, shrewd judgement, modesty and, above all, his technical brilliance make him my all-time hero... You can't get a more complete cricketer than Sachin. He has everything that a cricketer needs to have.

As a batsman, he has the technique, the hunger and the desire for runs. He always contributes with the bat as well as on the field. He also is a good fielder and bowls when needs. You really can't ask for a better cricketer than Sachin... He is a terrific person and has handled pressure brilliantly. He has handled his success very well and doesn't have any airs about him. He is a great guy and very good team man. In his heart of hearts, he is a very simple and down to earth person.
Azhar

The more I see him, the more I want to see him.
Sunil Gavaskar:
India's fortune will depend on how many runs the little champion scores. There is no doubt Tendulkar is the real thing
Harsha bhogle
if sachin plays well..india sleeps well
SOURAV GANGULY

The thing I like most about Sachin is his intensity. After being in the game for so long, he still has the same desire to do well for India in any international match.I tell you what, this man is a legend.
Kris Srikkanth

"He is the only match-winning batsman we have"
Ranatunga

"You get him out and half the battle is won"
Andy Flower:

There are 2 kind of batsmen in the world. One Sachin Tendulkar. Two all the others.
Martin Crowe:
A flighted full toss on Leg stump by spinner. any other will play this shot on leg side by pull shot or glance or flick. but sachin made a space and played a perfect cover drive for four runs.
Martin Crowe (New Zealand's ever best bats man) said " the shot played on this ball is only possible for GOD Of CRICKET "
Shane Warne:

You have to decide for yourself whether you're bowling well or not. He's going to hit you for fours and sixes anyway. Kasprowicz has a superior story. During the Bangalore Test, frustrated, he went to Dennis Lillee and asked, "Mate, do you see any weaknesses?" Lillee replied, "No Michael, as long as you walk off with your pride that's all you can do".
Rudy Kortzen

"I never get tired during umpiring whenever sachin is on crease"
sunny gavaskar

This was after a wonderful century by sachin(in england i guess in a test match..not sure)
Sunny: The other day i was just trying to think of a bowler who can go through sachin's defenses when sachin is in total defense. I am sorry but i could not think of even one name who could do that. If sachin decides he doesnt want to give away his wicket, he wont. be it any bowler in the world.
Cheers to Sachin...
PONTING

Ponting make comparisons btn sachin,Lara& jayasuriya.
Sachin is the best ever batsman in the world. He is brilliant in his technique. He is always hungry for runs.Sachin is better than Lara in his techniques & thats why he is No.1 among others.On his day,Lara wiil be more destructive. He is the only man 2 fight for west indies. Jayasuriya also played gr8 knocks 4 his team. But compared 2 them Sachin is the BEST
Pradeep Mandhani ..a Photographer

“Barely two hours after landing in Johannesburg on the 1992-93 tour to South Africa, the team was to visit Tolstoy Farm, Mahatma Gandhi's first Satyagrahi Commune founded in 1910. It was situated 35 kms from Jo'burg and most of the Indian players showed little interest, longing to rest in the hotel after the long flight. But Tendulkar, still a teenager, looked keen and hungry to learn more about Gandhi. His volley of questions to the guide reflected his national pride.”
NKP Salve, former Union Minister

This was when he was accused of ball tempering

“Sachin cannot cheat. He is to cricket what (Mahatma) Gandhiji was to politics. It's clear discrimination.”
Andrew Symonds:
wrote on an aussie t-shirt he autographed specially for Sachin. " To Sachin, the man we all want to be "
Virendra Sehwag:
Both of us have come a long away and it is a great honour that Tendulkar thinks I come close to resembling him as a batsman. It is a great honour, like a dream come true. If I die tomorrow I'll be the happiest man because I played this game because of Tendulkar, and Tendulkar himself saying that I resemble him - there is no bigger compliment than that.
Mathew Hayden:
I have seen GOD , he bats at no.4 for india in Tests.
Ravi Shashtri:
He is someone sent from up there to play cricket and go back.
Mark Taylor:
We did not lose to a team called india...we lost to a man called Sachin.
Brain Lara:
Sachin is a genius , i am a mere mortal!
Barry Richards:
Sachin is crickets GOD
Martin Crowe:
The shot played on this ball is only possible for the GOD of cricket.
Ian Botham:
If someoom the highest peak of the world.
Paul Strang:
What we [zimbabwe] need is 10 tendulkars.
Steve Waugh:
There is no shame losing to such a great player(sachin).
Shane Warne:
I would go to bed having nightmares of sachin dancing down the ground and hitting me for sixes.
Mathew Hayden:
His life seems to be a stillness in a frantic world... [When he goes out to bat], it is beyond chaos - it is a frantic appeal by a nation to one man. The people see him as a God...
Viv Richards:
He is 99.5% Perfect.. I'll pay to watch him play.
Dennis Lillie:
If I had to bowl to Sachin I would bowl with a halmet on. He hits the ball so hard.
Steve Waugh:
After being defeated in the Coca-Cola Cup finals in Sharjah) "It was one of the greatest innings I have ever seen. There is no shame being beaten by such a great player, Sachin is perhaps only next to the Don''
Sir Don Bradman:
I saw him playing on television and was struck by his technique, so I asked my wife to come look at him. Now I never saw myself play, but I feel that this player is playing much the same as I used to play, and she looked at him on Television and said yes, there is a similarity between the two...hi compactness, technique, stroke production... it all seemed to gel! in reference to Sachin Tendulkar.
Michael Kasprowicz:
Don't bowl him bad balls, he hits the good ones for fours."
Shane Warne:
I'll be going to bed having nightmares of Sachin just running down the wicket and belting me back over the head for six. He was unstoppable. I don't think anyone, apart from Don Bradman, is in the same class as Sachin Tendulkar. He is just an amazing player."
Wasim Akram:
Today, he showed the world why he is considered the best batsman around. Some of the shots he played were simply amazing. Earlier, opposing teams used to feel that Sachin's dismissal meant they could win the game. Today, I feel that the Indian players, too, feel this way.
Wasim Akram, after game at Hobart, CUB series, 1999
Brett Lee:
You might pitch a ball on the off stump and think you have bowled a good ball and he walks across and hits it for two behind midwicket. His bat looks so heavy but he just waves it around like it's a toothpick. Brett Lee, on Sachin Tendulkar's batting, 1999
Viv Richards:
I think he is marvellous. I think he will fit in whatever category of Cricket that has been played or will be played, from the first ball that has ever been bowled to the last ball that's going to be. He can play in any era and at any level.
Barry Richards:
Consensus is that Sir Donald Bradman was the best batsman ever to play Cricket. Sir Don did not play One-Day Cricket but if he did, he could easily be Sachin Tendulkar.
BBC Sports:
Beneath the helmet, under that unruly curly hair, inside the cranium, there is something we don't know, something beyond scientific measure. Something that allows him to soar, to roam a territory of sport that, forget us, even those who are gifted enough to play alongside him cannot even fathom. When he goes out to bat, people switch on their television sets and switch off their lives.
Wasim Akram:
"I dont know what to bowl at him. i bowled an inswinger n he drove me thr covers of d front foot. then i bld an outswinger n he again punched thr covers of d backfoot(for tamil fans-dai avan eppadi pottalum adikaranda). he is d toughest batsmen i 've bowled to. he shold live long n score lots of runs, but not against pakistan(smiling) "--LEGENDARY WASIM AKRAM on our own SACHIN on 24th april 2004 on espn Sachin's 30th B day program.(i think) on his knock in 2003 worldcup.
Sunil Gavaskar:
India's fortune will depend on how many runs the little champion scores. There is no doubt Tendulkar is the real thing.
Richie Benaud:
He has defined cricket in his fabulous, impeccable manner. He is to batting what Shane Warne is to bowling.
Geoffrey Boycott:
Technically, you can't fault Sachin. Seam or spin, fast or slow nothing is a problem.
Eddie Barlow:
He is Sachin Tendulkar. I hope he stays Sachin Tendulkar. We need a new player, a player in his own way. He has a technique which is the hallmark of a great player. Everything indicates that he will be a great player and I am sure he will prove me right. Reminds me of Barry Richards.
Greg Chappell:
He is a perfectly balanced batsman and knows perfectly well when to attack and when to play defensive cricket. He has developed the ability to treat bowlers all over the world with contempt and can destroy any attack with utmost ease.
Abdul Qadir:
I Was fielding in the covers Tendulkar came out to bat in his debut Test at Karachi. I still remember Waqar Younis was at his peak form at that time. Tendulkar tried to drive Waqar through the covers off his very first ball in Test cricket but was beaten all ends up. But I walked to captain Imran Khan and told him 'this kid looks very good' and Imran agree with me.
Sir Garfield Sobers:
I have watched a lot of Tendulkar and we have spoken to each other a lot. He has it in him to be among the very best.
Peter Roebuck:
Sometime back I had written a piece that said that Sachin's the master and Lara a genius with his head high up somewhere. That's it!
Jeff Thompson:
Sachin is an attacker. He has much more power than Sunny. He wants to be the one to set the pace. He has to be on top. That's the buzz about him.
Ian Healy:
Tendulkar is the most comouncy pitch with Hughes, McDermott and Whitney gunning for him he only had 60-odd when No 11 came in. I've seen him against Warne too.
Mike Coward:
Sachin's the best. I've had this view since I saw him score that hundred in Sydney in 1992. He's the most composed batsman I've ever seen.

A Man Alone by sinatra

In me you see a man alone
Held by the habit of being on his own
A man who listens to the trembling of the trees
With sentimental s ease

In me you see a man alone
Behind the wall he's learned to call his home
A man who still goes walking in the rain
Expecting love again.

A man not lonely
Except when the dark comes on
A man learning to live with
Memories of midnights
That fell apart at dawn

In me you see a man alone
Drinking up Sundays and spending them alone
A man who knows love is seldom what it seems
Only other people's dreams.

A man learning to live with
Memories of midnights
That fell apart at dawn

In me you see a man alone
Drinking up Sundays and spending them alone
A man who knows love is seldom what it seems
Just other people's dreams.

"Doosra Banwas "by Kaifi Azmi

Ram banwaas se jab laut ke ghar mein aaye,
Yaad jangal bahut aaya jo nagar mein aaye,
Raqsse deewangee aangan mein jo dekha hoga,
6 december ko Shri Ram ne socha hoga,
Itne deewane kahan se mere ghar mein aaye?

Jagmagate thhe jahan Ram key qadmon ke nishaan,
Piyaar kee kahkashan leti thi angdayee jahan,
Mod nafrat ke usee rah guzar mein aaye,
Dharam kya unka hae, kya zaat hae, yeh janta kaun?
Ghar na jalta tau unhe raat mein pehchanta kaun,
Ghar jalane ko mera, log jo ghar mein aaye,
Shakahari hae mere dost tumahara khanjar.

Tumne Babar kee taraf pheke thhe saare patthar
Hae mere sar ki khata zakhm jo sar mein aaye,
Paun Sarjoo mein aabhi Ram ne dhoye bhee na thhe
Ke nazar aaye wahan khoon ke gehre dhabbe,
Paun dhoye bina Sarjoo ke kinare se uthe,
Ram yeh kehte hue aapne dwaare se uthe,
Rajdhani kee fiza aayee nahin raas mujhe,
6 December ko mila doosra banwaas mujhe.

A rough translation:

“The Second Exile”

That evening when Lord Ram returned to his home
He remembered the jungles where he had spent his years of exile
When he must have seen the dance of madness that December 6
It must have crossed his mind
From where have so many demented ones landed on my home

Wherever he had stepped and his footprints had shone
The river waters where thousands of stars of love meandered
Instead now took turns of violence and hatred
What is their religion, what is their caste, who knows?
Had the house not burnt, who would have known the faces
Of those who came to burn my house
Your sword, my friend, is vegetarian.

You threw towards Babar all the stones
It is my head’s fault that, instead, it bleeds
Lord Ram had not even washed his feet in the Saryu waters
When he saw deep blots of blood.
Getting up without washing his feet in the waters
Lord Ram left the precincts of his own residence, bemoaning,
The state of my own capital city no longer suits me
This December 6, I have been condemned to a second exile

The Lost Leader by Robert Browning

I.

Just for a handful of silver he left us,
Just for a riband to stick in his coat---
Found the one gift of which fortune bereft us,
Lost all the others she lets us devote;
They, with the gold to give, doled him out silver,
So much was theirs who so little allowed:
How all our copper had gone for his service!
Rags---were they purple, his heart had been proud!
We that had loved him so, followed him, honoured him,
Lived in his mild and magnificent eye,
Learned his great language, caught his clear accents,
Made him our pattern to live and to die!
Shakespeare was of us, Milton was for us,
Burns, Shelley, were with us,---they watch from their graves!
He alone breaks from the van and the free-men,
---He alone sinks to the rear and the slaves!

II.

We shall march prospering,---not thro' his presence;
Songs may inspirit us,---not from his lyre;
Deeds will be done,---while he boasts his quiescence,
Still bidding crouch whom the rest bade aspire:
Blot out his name, then, record one lost soul more,
One task more declined, one more foot-path untrod,
One more devils'-triumph and sorrow for angels,
One wrong more to man, one more insult to God!
Life's night begins: let him never come back to us!
There would be doubt, hesitation and pain,
Forced praise on our part---the glimmer of twilight,
Never glad confident morning again!
Best fight on well, for we taught him---strike gallantly,
Menace our heart ere we master his own;
Then let him receive the new knowledge and wait us,
Pardoned in heaven, the first by the throne!

"I Shall Not Walk Alone" - BEN HARPER

Battered and torn
still I can see the light
tattered and worn
but I must kneel to fight

Friend of mine
what can't you spare
I know some times
it gets cold in there

When my legs no longer carry
and the warm wind chills my bones
I reach for Mother Mary
and I shall not walk alone

Hope is alive
while we're apart
only tears
speak from my heart
break the chains
that hold us down
and we shall be
forever bound

When I'm tired and weary
and a long way from home
I reach for Mother Mary
and I shall not walk alone

Beauty that
we left behind
how shall we
tomorrow find

Set aside
our weight in sin
so that we
can live again

When my legs no longer carry
and the warm wind chills my bones
I reach for Mother Mary
and I shall not walk alone

Are You Sure - Willie Nelson

Oh, look around you
Look down the bar from you
The lonely faces that you see
Are you sure that this is where you want to be

These are your friends
But are they real friends
Do they love you the same as me
Are you sure that this is where you want to be

You seem in such a hurry to live this kind of life
You've caused so many tears and misery

Look around you, take a good look
And tell me what you see
Are you sure that this is where you want to be

Don't let my tears persuade you, I had hoped I wouldn't cry
But lately, teardrops seem a part of me

Oh, look around you, take a good look
At all the lonely used-to-be's
Are you sure that this is where you want to be

Wash Away by Joe Purdy

I got troubles, lord, but not today
'Cause they're gonna wash away
They're gonna wash away

And I have sins, lord, but not today
'Cause they're gonna wash away
They're gonna wash away

And I have friends, lord, but not today
'Cause they done washed away
They done washed away

Lord, I've been crying alone
I've been crying alone
No, no more crying alone
no, no more crying here.

We get lonely, lord, but not today
Cause we're gonna wash away
We're gonna wash away

I got troubles, lord, but not today
Cause they're gonna wash away
This old river's gonna take them away.

Time Magazine on Sachin Tendulkar`s Journey

Time Magazine on Sachin Tendulkar`s Journey

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Friday, February 26, 2010 at 7:05pm

When Sachin Tendulkar travelled to Pakistan to face one of the finest bowling attacks ever assembled in cricket, Michael Schumacher was yet to race a F1 car, Lance Armstrong had never been to the Tour de France, Diego Maradona was still the captain of a world champion Argentina team, Pete Sampras had never won a Grand Slam.

When Tendulkar embarked on a glorious career taming Imran and company, Roger Federer was a name unheard of; Lionel Messi was in his nappies, Usain Bolt was an unknown kid in the Jamaican backwaters. The Berlin Wall was still intact, USSR was one big, big country, Dr Manmohan Singh was yet to "open" the Nehruvian economy.

It seems while Time was having his toll on every individual on the face of this planet, he excused one man. Time stands frozen in front of Sachin Tendulkar. We have had champions, we have had legends, but we have never had another Sachin Tendulkar and we never will.

H Natarajan's Sachin Tendulkar - The God Of Big Things

Sachin Tendulkar - The God Of Big Things

The personal and private side of Sachin Tendulkar is as fascinating and inspiring as his very high profile public life. H Natarajan dwells deep to present the human side of India’s national treasure. It’s a story based on the writer’s interactions with Tendulkar and with those associated with the player over the years.
..........................

Sahitya Sahawas, a co-operative housing society of writers in the western suburbs of Bandra, about six kms from Mumbai's famed Shivaji Park, boasts of respected names in Marathi literature like Gangadhar Gadgil, Arvind Gokhale, VP Kale, KJ Purohit, Shrinivas Bhange, Vrinda Karandikar, MV Rajadakshya and Vijaya Rajadakshya.

A stone's throw from Sahitya Sahawas is Patrakar Nagar, residence to some household names in Indian journalism. And not very far away from the two societies, is a modern fortress housing firebrand politician Bal Thackeray.

Amid these celebrated names was a cultured, middle-class household. The head of this family, Prof Ramesh, was a gold-medal winning Marathi literature professor and poet. His eldest son, Nitin, also became a poet and won the state government’s literary award for his first book. But it was the youngest of the professor’s four children who, says Nitin, “needed constant attention from elders in the family.”

``As a child, my kid brother would spend the entire day on the play ground and would hate coming home for his noon meals and nap. He was very difficult to handle at times. Sometimes my grandmother or mother would tie one of his legs to a wooden bench and attend to their house work, like of Bal Krishna!''

Even before he dropped out of college in pursuit of non-academic excellence, the boy had raised visions of becoming an icon and in the years to come attained Demi-God status. Amitabh Bachchan joined in the hosannas to say: “Sachin (Tendulkar) is the heartbeat of our nation. The country breathes every time he goes out to play and when he is out, the country stops breathing.”

Humility and credibility have remained Tendulkar’s strongest allies from his days as a non-entity to a super celebrity. I have watched him from close quarter right from his school days and never once I have seen him behave in an insensitive or arrogant manner. Now that is something not easy when you are a megastar.

A noted cricket columnist compared Tendulkar with Brian Lara: “One has his head high in the clouds, the other has his feet firmly planted on ground. While Lara has acquired for himself a swanky nine-bedroom luxury abode in Trinidad, adorned with marble staircase and a bat-shaped swimming pool, Tendulkar, international cricket's biggest money-spinner, lives in a modest two-bedroom house.”

Of course, this was written before Tendulkar moved into a swank, spacious house quite late in his career. It’s perfectly alright for anybody to enjoy luxuries in life from legitimate labour, but what the writer was trying to convey was that despite earning enormous wealth Tendulkar continued to stay for years in the same middle-class environment.

Nitin, the eldest of the Tendulkar brothers, gave me an insight into Sachin the person during a visit to his place a few years back: “He seeks blessings at the feet of all the family elders and Achrekar Sir before embarking on a tour. And he never forgets to buy things for every single family members when he returns back from the tour. Another endearing quality about him is that he never gets angry.”

One can vouch for that. Even when he is cocooned in the privacy of his hotel room with a `Do Not Disturb' board on his door, he has shown compassion than anger towards deadline-pressured journalists knocking at his door. He would be much happier if he were left alone by the media, yet few Indian superstars have been as helpful as him.

He has no known enemies in the media, but then he has not cultivated favourites either. To those who have offended him by their writings, his philosophy is simple: ``Pressmen too are entitled to having their bad days.''

Ajit Tendulkar (the brother who shaped Sachin’s cricketing fortunes) said in one of his meetings with me: ``I have never heard Sachin complain about anything written against him. He takes everything written about him in his stride – be it good or bad. He allows nothing to affect him.

If there is one thing he could buy with all his money, then it’s privacy. Taking the family out for a movie or for a dinner would mean running the risk of being mobbed. For a religious man like him, even going to the temples mean the focus shifting from the stone idols to the living idol! So visit to temples are at unearthly hours. He just cannot do simple things that most people take it for granted.

When he was still in the prime of his youth, he understood his social responsibility and said no to endorsing cigarettes, alcohol and pan masala when others of his age were making ‘style statements’ doing exactly the opposite. But then, while boys of his age were playing gully cricket, he was already rubbing shoulders with cricketing greats like Kapil Dev and Mohammad Azharuddin. It would be fair to say, Tendulkar missed a lot of things that boys do in their teenage years. As a result, the mental transition to manhood came about while physically he still looked an adolescent.

A common praise I heard from all those who have known him is that he has always showed concern for those not as fortunate as him. The Mumbai team got Reebok as their sponsors a few years back only because Tendulkar agreed, though the money offered for the entire team was one fourths of the price Tendulkar single-handedly commanded at that time. He agreed only because it would help the rest of his team-mates. And it’s not just fellow players. He paid his entire Ranji Trophy season's earnings to the Mumbai Cricket Association ground staff after Mumbai beat Punjab in the 1994-95 final.

There is unanimity that fame and success have not changed him one bit. This despite the fact that his single month's earnings - even very early in his career - far exceeded the amount most people get after slogging a lifetime. Even today, except for his passion for luxury cars and fast driving, his interests are like any other middle class person – music, family, friends and good food.

Though he is a very private person by nature, he is not a recluse. He is fun-loving when and where he wants to be. “In the dressing room, at times he is like a schoolboy when he is with Vinod (Kambli). They keep pulling each other's legs,” says Balwinder Sandhu.

Of course, Kambli has remained one of his soul mates since his Sharadashram school days. “He is the first guy I talk to anything important about my cricketing, personal or private life,” Kambli had told me once about his closest buddy. “I will never forget the happiness on his face when I and Ajay (Jadeja) join the team in Australia for the 1992 World Cup. (The team that had stayed back after the Test series against Australia). It was around 12.30 at night when we arrived in the team hotel. And there was Sachin waiting for me, greeting me with a warm hug. He knew I would make it for the World Cup.”

The concern and love that Kambli talks kept ringing in my ears everytime I spoke to somebody known to Tendulkar. Coach Ramakant Achrekar said: “It was Sachin who was instrumental in the success of my two benefits. He is very big-hearted and distributes among his team-mates gifts showered on him. He has never forgotten the values and upbringing inculcated in him by his parents.”

As Ajit Tendulkar explained: ``Our parents gave us the liberty to do what we want. But we ensured that we did not breach the trust reposed on us. Even when the decision was made to change Sachin's school from New English (Bandra) to Shardasharam, my dad spoke to Sachin to know his feelings even at that young age.''

Tendulkar’s decision to be largely private, soft-spoken and non-demonstrative has meant many of his inspiring qualities do not get the attention that it deserves. Prof Ratnakar Shetty told me how upset Tendulkar was to see the Indian flag hung upside down during India’s 1997 tour of Sri Lanka. Tendulkar, Shetty added, not only called the liaison officer and saw to it the mistake was quickly rectified but also asked him how he would have felt to see the Sri Lankan national flag in such a position.

Photographer Pradeep Mandhani reiterates Tendulkar’s patriotism: “Barely two hours after landing in Johannesburg on the 1992-93 tour to South Africa, the team was to visit Tolstoy Farm, Mahatma Gandhi’s first Satyagrahi Commune founded in 1910. It was situated 35 kms from Jo’burg and most of the Indian players showed little interest, longing to rest in the hotel after the long flight. But Tendulkar, still a teenager, looked keen and hungry to learn more about Gandhi. His volley of questions to the guide reflected his national pride.”

Another journalist friend, Joseph Hoover, recalls a casual conversation he had with Tendulkar on the 1997 tour of Pakistan led. “I suggested to Sachin to do something for the less fortunate of the society. He instantly agreed and asked me my plans; I had none as it was a casual remark. But within minutes he phoned Meerut and arranged for bats to be sent to Bangalore which were to be signed by players and later auctioned. Thanks to his initiative and the enthusiasm of the Indian team, an auction of cricketing equipment donated by players was held the following year and the proceeds went to street children in Mumbai (Apnalaya) and a home for the blind and another the leprosy afflicted in Bangalore. All this from a casual talk.”

Tendulkar’s concern for terminally-ill children is especially pronounced. He does not like to put off any meetings when they want to meet him, even when doctors assure him that there is no immediate threat to their lives. He even keeps in touch with their families. Of course, he hates talking about it.

He shows similar concern for fellow players. Beneficiaries in India often suffer when players don’t turn up after promising to participate in their benefit games, but Tendulkar has never been accused of letting down any player. He is aware of his magnetic powers, having seen spectators in thousands heading for the exit the moment he is dismissed.

Says TA Sekhar: “There was much hype in the media when Sachin had become the first overseas player to be signed for Yorkshire. He had promised that he would play my benefit, but I feared that his star appeal would be missing. It would have been a huge blow for me. When I rang up Sachin, he replied: ‘Don’t worry, when I give my word I honour it. I have made it clear before signing the contract with Yorkshire that I have a commitment to play a benefit and I cannot let down the beneficiary.’ Sachin kept up his word.”

Tendulkar’s public reputation is such that when he was accused of ball tampering, the entire nation rose in protest. NKP Salve, former Union Minister and a past president of the BCCI, echoed the sentiments of the masses when he said: “Sachin cannot cheat. He is to cricket what (Mahatma) Gandhiji was to politics. It’s clear discrimination.” The ICC were forced to explain that Tendulkar’s only mistake was removing grass from the ball without informing the umpires, “which is very different from ball tampering”.

One of the biggest factors that vouch for his credibility was at the height of the match-fixing scandal it was said that the betting mafia would not fix odds till Tendulkar was dismissed.
Tendulkar is unquestionably one of the all-time greats of the game, but what boggles the mind is the fact that, despite the surrealistic fame and trappings of money, the values and humility inculcated by his parents have remained intact. The middle class roots of the Tendulkars are very strong. Sachin’s mother Rajini continued to be an LIC employee long after her son became cricket’s Bill Gates.

Tendulkar may have made the transition from Bandra East to the upper crust Bandra West in a building that also houses another high-profile celebrity - Aishwarya Rai. But East or West, “the greatest living Indian”, as Bishan Bedi once lauded Sachin, remains still unspoilt, uncorrupted and unassuming as ever.

.........................

Cherished Moments

• I first visited the Tendulkar residence when Sachin was still creating waves as a schoolboy. The visit was to get inputs for what was among the first feature articles written on Sachin. The abiding memory of that visit was the image of the family remaining completely unaffected and showing no visible trace of excitement that parents normally betray when they see a media person wanting to write about their young child.
  
• The Tendulkars have remained conscious of their middle class values and their middle class friends who have been friends long before Sachin became “Richie Rich”. Though the family opted for a very private wedding ceremony for Sachin (the reception was a public affair), they ensured that there was an exclusive celebration reserved for the Sahawas inhabitants and close friends. These were the people with whom they bonded emotionally when they fame and fortune was still to knock at their doors and they decided to treat them in a special manner.
  
• I cannot recollect a single instance when he hurt a kid by refusing an autograph asked at an appropriate time. In fact, I recall an instance when we were both talking while awaiting a flight when a father butted in with his child and interrupted us. Any other person would have expressed his displeasure at the intruding gentleman, but Tendulkar shook hands with the child, gave his autograph and genuinely made him feel good by telling him to study well and obey his parents. It was a humbling moment. His love for kids has meant they have often left his room with cakes, pastries and fruits.
  
• I had once requested Tendulkar for an interview after he had returned from a long tour. The request was made at night while the following morning he was heading for a spending some quiet couple of days with his wife outside the state before heading to play a benefit match. Yet, he was gracious enough to say that he would do a long-distance telephone interview for me. I just did not have the heart to take advantage of his niceness. I told him that he deserved his rest and the little moment of privacy he got with his wife and decided not to trouble him. Was I unprofessional? Maybe. But I felt good that I was able to project a human face to a good gesture.
  
• Former ICC panel umpire VK Ramaswamy told me a story which underlines Tendulkar’s commitment. Sometime in the early 90s, the organisers of a tournament in Meerut were worried that Tendulkar may not turn up as he was playing a benefit match the previous day at Silchar. “But he took a flight from Silchar to Delhi, covered the two and half hour distance from Delhi to Agra by road, reached around 3.00 am and was there at the match, looking as fresh and enthusiastic as ever to play for his office (Sun-Grace Mafatlal)!”
  
• Hemant Kenkre, a dear friend of mine, recollects the time Tendulkar refused to accept money for an ad he did for Anja San. The exclusive men’s boutique in Mumbai is owned by singer Asha Bhosle' s son, who wanted to pay Tendulkar his price. But Tendulkar would not accept it. Says Kenkre: ``Frankly I would have taken money in Sachin's place. I can understand him refusing the money today, but at that early point of his career he was not making the kind of money he is making today. It truly showed the character in him.”

W.H. Auden

All I have is a voice

To undo the folded lie,

The romantic lie in the brain

Of the sensual man-in-the-street

And the lie of Authority

Whose buildings grope the sky:

There is no such thing as the State

And no one exists alone;

Hunger allows no choice

To the citizen or the police;

We must love one another or die.

Defenceless under the night

Our world in stupor lies;

Yet, dotted everywhere,

Ironic points of light

Flash out wherever the Just

Exchange their messages:

May I, composed like them

Of Eros and of dust,

Beleaguered by the same

Negation and despair,

Show an affirming flame.

If only you cared

If only you cared,
then maybe I wouldn't be doing this to myself.
If only anyone cared,
I wouldn't have done this to me.
Look at me, I'm a mess
Both in the inside and in the outside.
My eyes red from crying,
and heart torn from stupidity
I hate my life, I have to say.
it has no point to it.
I make mistakes..realize it..learn from it...then do it over and over again.
damn something's wrong with me.
I think my brain malfunctionin...or I'm just plain stupid
I don't know..it's one of them

but, if only you cared,
if only ANYONE cared,
I wouldn't be in this mess right now.

Can't Let it Go..

How will I ever let go of our past?
The happy, crazy, fun past?
The ones with all the smiles and the 'lols'
With the funny &sweet nicknames
The one that always brought up our days...
Remember them?
The ones where we tell funny stories..(lmfao(?))
Remember the ones with the babies & hospitals
and the husbands

and the...abusive wife?
Remember our funny/serious Momment of Truths?
The ones where we talked about the most random and stupid things?
Remember them?
The happy emails & mssgs?
and the ones that we're not too happy?

I don't why/how we ended up like this..
But I don't like it one bit anymore..
Never thought I'll say this after all I've been through
..but i miss you
Seems like everywhere I try to go,
I keep thinking of you.

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quote

Love , despite what they tell you , doesn't conquer all nor does it even usually last......

poem on life

Some people might say life sucks
or life is full of shit
While other people say life is beautiful
or life is full of surprises
I must say, I agree with all those
Life is whatever you think of it..and everything you think of it
Life is what you make it of it and what you say of it.

Life is about sadness
Life is about happiness
Life is about pain
Life is miserable
Life is about loss
Life is about smiling
Life is about crying
Life is about love
Life is about laughter
Life is about learning from your mistakes
Life is horrible
Life is dumb
Life is awesome
Life is depression
Life is tears
Life is sorrow
Life is anxiety
Life is Bullshit
Life stinks
Life sucks
I could go on and on and tell you all about life
But I'm not here to sort this out for you
cuz..
Life is all about you and how you treat it
You criticizes it...well, you're actually criticizing yourself
You like it, you hate it..well, its all up to you
Life is you so be careful how you describe it

Sometimes a man can meet his destiny on the road he took to avoid it.....


Some people just don't know how to appreciate what they've got.....