Sachinnnn Sachinnn !.. Sachinnnn Sachinnnn !.. Sachinnnn Sachinnnn !..

"Sachinnnn  Sachinnnn” “Sachinnnn  Sachinnnn” “Sachinnnn  Sachinnnn” !!! This is the most iterated rhyme of a 90s Indian kid which includes myself. Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar.

   For a kid born in early 90s like me, cricket was nothing but SACHIN TENDULKAR. We grew up along with Sachin's career, watching him becoming the best in the business, becoming the GOD of the game we loved. We watched cricket just to watch him bat. Every time he went out to bat, we wanted him to score a century and win it all by himself for the country. That mattered to us the most, than anything else. He made our childhood to be precise.

But as I grew up, I started understanding the game more. I understood Sachin more. But one thing never changed. Sachin’s batting gave us joy. Throughout those 24 years, in all those 664 international appearances he made, we wanted him to bat for as long as possible.

When we look back at Sachin’s journey, there are a lot of untold stories. What everyone knows is that Sachin was a childhood prodigy who took the world by storm and scripted an unimaginable story in the history of the game. But what most people didn’t know is that Sachin was the most blessed child of his generation. Like Rahul Dravid mentioned recently in the MAK Pataudi lecture, Sachin got the best support system possible, for a kid who possessed unimaginable talent and immense hard work.

Sachin was so blessed to get a brother like Ajit, a mentor like Ramakant Acherekar. It’s so interesting that the career of Sachin coincides with the most important phase of Indian economy. In 1991 Sachin had just started to take the centre stage of the sport. It was in the same year Economic liberalisation was brought into act by then Indian Government. Sponsors flew in towards the wonder kid of the second most populated country. Cable TVs, Colour televisions entered the lives of the middle-class people. Sachin was now visually available at almost every single home in India.

Every single house/family owned him, as if he was their own. To be honest, that’s a curse as much as it’s a blessing. 1997-2003 was the span in which Sachin was at his peak. It’s amazing that he was in form for almost six long years. He was the nightmare for every single opposition. Most teams believed that if they got Sachin, they’ve won the match. Irony is that, almost every Indian thought so. Most of them switched off the TV as soon as Sachin got out.

Luckily my home wasn’t in that list. The love for the game I had is in my gene. At least I believe so. The interest towards cricket at home goes long back into the days of radio commentary, when there were no televisions in the native village were my Dad grew up. It was he, who made me realise that cricket is not just about Sachin. It’s a team game. And more importantly, anything is possible in cricket.

It’s not that people at home didn’t like Sachin. We adored him as much as anybody else in the country. But they just know that the game is bigger than any individual. This is something that even Sachin has said himself.

On field Sachin as an individual, was a Genius. He worked hard as much as a person could at his game. Technique wise he‘s a freak. Every time he went out to bat, he wanted to dominate the bowler, whoever he may be. His hunger and appetite for runs is unimaginable.

The way he handled himself on the field made everyone love him. There were a billion people who wanted to make his dream of winning a world cup come true. When he finally lifted it after 22 long years, most people cried in joy for him winning the world cup than the country winning it.  

Once he retired, the book of Sachin got released. The title of the book “Playing it my way” suited him the most. True, Sachin played the game in his own way, which was unimaginable for anybody else. That is the reason why the whole world is in awe of him even now. But in the book, more than joy which he gave on the field, a fine line of rage was clearly visible at many places. I would have preferred the dressing room things remain within, than exposing it to the world. I wouldn’t complain though, as he was honest.

Even now whilst writing this, two years after his retirement there is only one thing I remember when I think about him. Thinking about Sachin’s batting gives me only Happiness. I am always grateful to him for making my childhood with awesome memories. Don’t think me as if I didn’t love him as much as the country did. I am one of those billion fans who cried on 16-Nov-2013. Believe me, I did. Happy birthday Sachin !

The story will not be the same without a genuine story teller !...

            People play sport for different reasons. Some play it for their physical fitness, some as hobby and some for the joy it gives. But none will take it as a profession if there are no spectators. The sponsors come in and players get paid only because of the spectators. People may disagree that they play for pride. Yes, players indeed should take pride in representing their country. But none will do it for free. And I don't ask them to do as well. What I am trying to say is that sport will not flourish as a profession if there are no spectators.

           Cricket comes under this as well. We watch the game for the joy it gives us. The joy can be increased or decreased by the story teller, i.e. commentators.They narrate the untold stories of the game to a common fan. They even help a lot of people improve their language and communication skills unknowingly. I honestly believe that the very little amount of English I know, is learnt purely by listening to commentators like Mark Nicholas, Alan Wilkins, Michael Slater, Mike Atherton, Harsha Bhogle and a few others. Being an Indian, Harsha Bhogle has been an inspiration to me. His perspective towards the game has always amazed me.

           If we look at the past twenty five years, there isn't a better commentator from India. A lot of cricketing legends has taken commentating as their second profession. But only a very few are genuinely good at commentating, like they were at playing. It is always great to hear from the legends and knowing their point of view about the game. But, to be a professional commentator certain skills are required and I believe only a few have it. Rahul Dravid could have become a commentator as good as Harsha. But there are bigger things he is capable of doing. And very rightly, he went to do that.
       
           Now that Harsha Bhogle's term as commentator in IPL has been terminated without any notice, I would like to look at the possible reasons for it. Either it might have been the argument with organizer in Nagpur or the comment on the pitches during India -South Africa test series or that tweet and explanation regarding Ind-Ban match. Or all these might just have piled up. If there is a genuine reason, then that could have been explained.

            Either he was so wrong that it wasn't explainable or it may be the fact that he was so good at telling the actual story which couldn't be bared. But I just hope like he himself has said, it's not because of the comments from the players. Because I believe he isn't one of those commentators who praises like god on a good day and ditches like the reverse of it on a bad one. Being a professional commentator he has always stuck to the story and told it as it is. He do praise on a good day but mentioning the past as well. Which means he clearly knows that one good or one bad day is not going to define a player. And there isn't a better commentator who criticizes in a gentler manner. In other words a very professional manner. And being professional is the only thing that he has always loved to be referred with.
           
          But this is not just about him. When these petty politics happen to affect the sport it is definitely not good. More than on field which everyone knows, when it is affecting the small off field external things like these, it will not have a good impact on the spectators. It is really heart warming to see the spectators speak up in favor of a commentator in common, irrespective of the their favorite player/team.

     
         It is for those spectators these tournaments are being held. Without spectators the game isn't going to flourish. I just hope the  cricketing board thinks about it and I believe it is only for the IPL and not for the internationals. Like Harsha famously quoted regarding Sachin's name not in the Lord's Honours board, it's the loss for the tournament and the spectators for they cannot hear from a genuinely good story teller. And hopefully it doesn't last long.

It all comes down to this!

       It all comes down to this at the Eden Gardens. One is a team which looks as if they own the format and the other one is a team which has completely transformed their perspective towards the format.

    As far as T20 is concerned, WI have always looked like a champion side. When all their stars come to their own aiming for a single trophy, they'll be nearly unstoppable.

   They have stuck to their game plan. Their dot ball percent is too high. But so is their boundary percent. That's the reason why they struggled on a slow turning track against Afghanistan. But with the inclusion of Simmons and the innings he played against India they should be able to play much better than the other night. He is one of those who can rotate the strike really well.

   Though they have won four games so far, West indies are yet to set a target for the opposition in the tournament. They have chased in all five matches. We will have to wait and watch whether they can ignore the big occasion and chase again.

   England on the other hand has played some really good cricket. They are bowling well. Their batsmen are attacking from the word go. They are playing similar to the way they played in 2010. Root is doing the job that Pietersen did in 2010. With a lot of match winners like butler, stokes in the side, they should be backing themselves to cross the line for the second time.
  Recently I read Michael Atherton saying that England has benefited alot because of it's association with BCCI in this tournament as for as pitches and travel schedules are concerned. But I don't buy that thought too much because, unlike England, Australia who is one among the BIG THREE have played on tough conditions.

    The reason for England's redemption in shorter format is their world cup exit last year and their decision to persist with Morgan. That exit made them rethink their approach and the pitches used for the format. I have always wondered since 2012 why Alex hales then no. 1 T20 batsman was not picked for the ODIs. The series after the world cup against NZ saw some flat pitches and really high scoring games. Ever since England have played similar kind of cricket. They have got the perfect team balance.

 England also have rided so far on chasing. That is why I believe there's a lot riding on the way the pitch is gonna behave. If the ball turns square like it did in IND - PAK game, it's going to be a difficult game to predict. That's when the toss matters alot. But if it is similar to those these two teams have played so far, both the teams would prefer chasing because the PAR SCORE is becoming difficult to predict these days.
   Purely for their attitude and the joy they bring on, heart goes with the Windies. But somewhere deep inside I feel that England have a better chance for a second time glory. We just have to wait and watch.