200 Carat Gold - Sir Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar!

Mamta Banerjee is upset today because she gets only one day in the year to grab the headlines and that has been snatched from her, Saeed Anwar is upset because the sole reason of people remembering him has been erased, Charles Coventry’s far stretched honeymoon is also over, as a gentleman also sometimes known as, Sachin Tendulkar, has done something which no one has ever done before in the history of this game. You would have hardly realized about this great feat if you would have just gone by his post match comments, where he was still praising Karthik, Pathan and Dhoni for their exceptional batting and talking as if it was just another day in the office for him and dedicating the double ton to the ‘people of India’, What a subtle snub to the regional chauvinists (would dearly love to hear T Company’s reaction on this great featJ). And very similar was his reaction after achieving the echelon of double hundred, no jump in the air, no fist pumping and no aggravated celebrations. Emotionless as ever! Epics has been written about the greatness of this man, comparisons have been made between him and every possible artisan who has excelled in any possible form of art across the globe but this man still stands out above all, not just for his impeccable records but more so for his humility and the way he has conducted himself amidst insurmountable success he has seen over the years. Phenomenally balanced head on his shoulders! I have never seen this man claiming himself as the no.1 or considering any opponent as an ordinary one, he is still as grounded as a below poverty line rickshaw puller may be. Never talks over ambitiously about his feats or anything bad about the opposing contemporaries, if at all some talking is done from his end rather fulsome talking, it is always his bat which does so. Kudos to his upbringing! Amazingly,Pre-budget blues have seen almost all stocks go flat over the past week or so but one scrip which has zoomed sky high is Sachin Tendulkar!

Ever seen the entire nation cursing Dhoni for hitting sixes and fours of every ball in the slog overs? Ever seen the whole of India cheering for Amla for stopping a probable dhoni boundary and converting it into a single? Ever seen an office cafeteria more crowded at 5.45 in the evening than at the lunch time? It all happened today, because nobody was interested in Dhoni’s hard hitting or working in office cubicle or doing anything else other than watching their beloved champion take strike and accomplish a feat which has not been achieved in 2960 matches played over 40 years. Such is the impact of this man on this sport, on this nation and on the life of a common man. When he is on song even the Pakistanis enjoy, cherish and hail his craftsmanship.Each and every ground in the Australia stood for this man both when he entered and left the field. Salute to the Maestro!

I have spent a considerable amount of my life arguing and fighting with my friends and colleagues trying to prove that he is the best and the greatest batsman of all times. I have often defended myself and the legend by the sheer weight of his stats. Some said he is yet to score a triple in tests, some said he lacks the impact which Sehwag has, some said he chokes in second innings, some said India losses when he scores a ton, some even said he plays only for his personal milestones. I always had a view that perhaps pressure of expectation on Sachin is greater than on any sporting personality because of a billion strong Indian diaspora and a ever so hyperventilating Indian Media and hence I defended each and every one of those outrageously criminal allegations by giving apt examples, instances and statistical figures and succeeded 9/10 times. But as always today when I was hearing/reading the tributes flowing on for the little genius from all across the cricketing fraternity and from other corners too, I was shocked to hear what Mr Sunil Gavaskar said, he went on praising the little master for his impeccable technique, solid temperament and phenomenal self conduct but then he went on to say ‘I will touch Sachin’s feat when I meet him for the next time’. I was so moved that it literally brought tears in my eyes out of the respect for the great man. Thereon I decided I will never indulge into any argument doubting Sachin’s credibility and greatness. For those who still doubt it, may better sense prevail and God help those souls. But I dread for the day when he decides to hang his boots. GOD! Don’t know what will happen to this nation then? A Month long national mourning? Postal stamps by his name? Him replacing Mahatma on the Indian currency note? National Holiday on 24^th of April? Don’t know what not? But I seriously don’t want to see that day in my life, because I don’t know how our lives would be without him playing for India. I believe that would be the saddest day for all of us.

When the almighty felt the need to save the mankind from the evils of the Demon Raavana he graced this planet in the form of Lord Rama, when he felt the need to cease the atrocities of barbarian Kansa or Duryodhana he took the avatar of Lord Krishna. But when he felt the desire for playing cricket he graced our land in the form of Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar, because no other living being can be so perfect, so complete and yet so grounded like him. Blessed are the people of Gwalior city who watched the maestro unleash his artistry on this special day, blessed are those 21 players and 2 umpires who shared the same turf with him, where all the magic happened and I feel I am blessed along with my fellow countrymen to have taken birth in the same land, to have breathed the same air and to see this godly creature exhibiting his magic in true sense. So words like Comparisons,Great, Bharat Ratna and Padma Bhushan have no significance in his case, after all GODS don’t need such adjectives before their namesJ

Hail the Champion! Hail the Magician! Hail the GOD!

Take a BOW!

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