The greatest batsman, after Sir Don Bradman, the most worshipped cricketer ever, will exit the stage after 24 years (almost to the day, depending on when his last test match finishes). Few men have....wait, no other cricketer has ever commanded the sort of adulation, respect, love and frenzy, which the little master has commanded.
A summary of his cricketing journey, from a boy who was first exposed to cricket with the word "Sachin".
Pre-1993: Too young to remember anything
1994: Yaar, Sachin kya khelta hai
1996 World Cup - Sachin lost us the match....he was dismissed on 90. (Ind - Aus match, Brabourne Stadium)
1996 World Cup - Semifinal: Sachin scored 65 out of 120 runs...the team is useless.
Early 1997 - India's tour of SA.
Sachin is as amazing as usual, it takes a catch like this to dismiss him. He is the best, by far, in this team. But wait, this lad called Rahul Dravid seems suited to test cricket.
1997- Independence Cup: The team is no longer playing well. Sachin is not a good captain.
1998 - Silver Jubilee Independence Cup, Dhaka
The captaincy is gone, the master is back. He bats like a dream, he bowls well, he fields like a terrier.
1998 - Australia's tour to India: Chennai
The master is in full flow....takes Shane Warne and Gavin Robertson to the cleaners. Subsequent talk of nightmares for a worn-out Warne.
1998 - Sharjah - Desert Storm.
_/\_ is all I can say.
1999-2000 - Captaincy 2.0, A not-so-savoury experience, leading to a premature resignation
2001-2002: A crucial contributor in India's newfound resilience abroad. By this time, Rahul Dravid, VVS and Dada, the Captain have stepped in to share the workload.
2003 World Cup - The top scorer, 1 century, 6 scores in the 90s, player of the tournament.
And of course, those two sixes against Caddick and Shoaib.
2004 - Restrained batsmanship, but no less effective.
Late 2004-Late 2007: The years of the slide. Injuries took their toll, his form was inconsistent, Greg Chappell also had a part to play. And all of us believed at that point that Ricky Ponting has to overtake the Master Blaster.
How wrong we were! :)
Never Mind, that moment wasn't far away
The canteen was, well, in delirium.
World Cup 2011: Well, everyone won the World Cup for him. Richly deserved for the greatest ODI cricketer there ever has been, and there ever will be.
After World Cup 2011, the path hasn't been as glorious. Maybe, you may have retired a few months earlier. Having said that, we do have the joy of watching you twice. Hope you give us a parting century Sir.
There may be allegations placed on him, such as playing for records, not rising to adverse circumstances and 4th innings chases, non - payment of taxes on the Ferrari (which, by the way, was gifted to him, and not purchased. This is why he had asked for the waiver).
Sachin, while being close enough to godliness, still is a human being. Everyone would cherish a century, or a landmark, such as playing 200 tests. What matters is that he played for the team. And speaking of not playing under adverse circumstances, one can only count the number of occasions, when he has laid the platform for his teammates to score, only for them to collapse like a pack of cards, once he is dismissed.
Above all, his style of play, an all round game comprising all the shots in the book have provided joy to innumerable Indians for a quarter of a century. And all this has been achieved with utmost grace and humility. Guys like me first heard the name "Sachin" in conjunction with the game of cricket.
Thank you SRT for all the joy and memories, and farewell!
