Compaq Moments

Wednesday, 16 September 2009


When Sachin Tendulkar made his debut 20 years ago, people were amazed by the power and the courage of a 16 year old when he faced Akram, Yunis and Qadir. He had an injury in his first test, but came back to score a fifty. Then in a subsequent match, he clubbed Qadir like a club level bowler. From that day to the present, he has lived a life like very few men have before him.

So many comparisons and so many records! He was initially compared to his own mate, Vinod Kambli and was hailed as a mature little kid. He was then compared to Vivian Richards for his aggression. Then of course to 'The Don' Bradman. If Cricket is a 'Religion' in this Country, Sachin is God! This was the level to which he has been revered. A generation of Cricketers have grown up idolizing him and today they are playing alongside him. Sehwag has never hidden his adoration for Sachin and used to imitate even the walking style. Today 'Veeru' is a Class Act in his own right. But even today, he doesn't deny his 'Inspiration'.

The volume of runs he has accumulated over these 20 years is staggering. Another 330 odd runs will take him past 30,000 International runs. Any man living or not born yet will have to be as extraordinary as Sachin to overtake this. The best Statistician on earth can spend all his wit and all the information on his PC and still not be able to enumerate all those records he has created and is still busy creating. I have since long stopped bothering about Sachin Tendulkar's records. He was born to score runs in tons and he is doing just that.

There was a period when injuries, lack of support and perhaps a bit of self-consciousness had dogged Sachin. This had hampered his performances. He was never really successful as Captain of Indian Team. Kirti Azad and Sunil Valson and Jogindar Sharma and Srisanth can claim they have ONE record which even Sachin Tendulkar doesn't have. He has never been a part of a World Cup winning team. These are the only two setbacks he has faced in an otherwise unparalleled career.

On January 1, 2010: Sachin will create another record. He will become the 'First Ever' Player to have played International Cricket during four different decades. He made his debut as a 'Super Kid' in 1989. He was a 'Young Master' in 1990s. He evolved as the 'Master Blaster' mellowed version through 2000s. And then he will carry on to 2010s, the amazing Phenomenon of SRT! Only Mohindar Amarnath came anywhere close to this record. He debuted in 1969 and played through 70s and 80s before being snubbed by the 'Bunch of Jokers' lead by Raj Singh Dungarpur in 1989. Had Dungarpur not been so stupid, Amarnath would have been the first to hold this record.

Why am I giving so much importance to this one record? Simply because in any field, longevity of this kind has to be appreciated, applauded and admired. Sachin has been around for 20 years and is still going strong. If his innings in the Compaq Cup final is any indication, he has left behind all the baggage of records behind and is enjoying the game like he has never done before. And this is 'Great News' for India and Indians and extremely 'Bad News' for the Opponents.

For long the fortunes of 'Team India' depended on Sachin till Rahul Dravid started scoring big on foreign tours. India's stock rose and sank with Sachin even after Rahul, Saurav and Laxman came. It was only by 1999, that he got some kind of relief. But even then, the expectations of people have been so gigantic; it was almost cruel. I myself have criticized Sachin's failures to finish off matches. There were so many occasions when he did all the ground work only to fall a few steps from the target and then the Indian batting used to collapse like the proverbial 'pack of cards'. The blame will be placed squarely on 'Sachin's failure' to give the finishing touch. Other people's inabilities never bothered people.

Super Kid, Little Master, Young Master, Master Blaster and so many nick names. Comparisons have been there all through his career. A lot of our own people will call him 'Selfish' and will exult at the prospect of Ricky Ponting breaking his record for most number of Test Centuries. They even call people like Hussey and Sangakkara better players on current form.

Sachin might have been immature as a youngster, too serious as Captain and too preoccupied with scoring runs most of the times. But what separates him is his enthusiasm for the game even today. His unadulterated smile and the joy on his face when India won the Compaq cup was so charming and so full of life; it was hard to believe this is a man who has seen it all for over 2 decades now.

So which of the Comparisons will I agree with? Any comparison with anyone of recent times is just a 'Joke'. No living Cricketer comes anywhere near Sachin in terms of talent, dedication and the sheer load of records. And what about Sir Don Bradman? I have never seen Bradman. But I would like to know if he carried the expectations of a 100 Crore population on his shoulders! I would also like to know if 'The Don' would have lasted this long playing the enormous volume of Cricket Sachin has played. The worst part is the Criticism he has had to face from absolutely 'Nothing People'. People who'll not be able to score a 'score' in 'Gully Cricket' commenting on the waning abilities of Sachin! What a joke!

As far as I am concerned, I would desist from comparing Sachin to anyone from the past or present. For me, he is beyond the adjectives, above the superlatives and simply 'Incomparable'. Shall I say this? Sachin can be compared to only one; that is Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar. As simple as that! He is a 'New Benchmark'. Future Generations will be thrilled by just the mention of the name. Sachin can't be compared to anyone; henceforth comparisons will have a reference point and that is "Sachin"

That is just about it, as Compaq as possible!