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A Decade of Brilliance

sushil:
sushil49_2000@yahoo.com: Hi sachin.

Mahesh:
: May we see many more blazing innings flow from Sachin's willow. Bradman or no Bradman, the world has not seen such a powerful and yet sincere team player, who plays with only one aim -- India should win.

Srinivas Murthy:
smurthy01@sprynet.com: Prem, this piece was a BEAUTY! I wonder how I might have missed reading it in April, but I am glad I read both you and Arvind. You know what, I first read Arvind's article and started agreeing with his statistics, on the other hand the ten years of sheer brilliance I have enjoyed watching Tendlya play made me curse Arvind. And voila, you put a voice to my feelings! I dont know about you but I also cherish this kid's last over bowling in the Titan Cup to pull off an impossible win against South Africa. Much much regards :-)

Brijesh:
brijeshu@chequemail.com: Carry on and on and on .....Sachin

Sriram:
sriram@giasbma.vsnl.net.in: yaaaawwn... u bore me maan...i dunno why i still read all what u write...change ur style a bit

Shyam:
shya@email.com: All i can say is ........He is the only Indian who makes me feel proud to be Indian...no one else can lay claim to that and that is reason enough to just sit back and enjoy him....

Rahul:
saturn_saturn@rediffmail.com: Sachin he is a great player to all india as well as the world cricket we. In the world of cricket he'll be an example for the great players. Sebastian:
sejoseph@usa.alcatel.com: I feel blessed to see sachin play. When I watch hiim play, I don't look at anything else on the TV screen. Sachin....a new word for 'the best', anyone should do it the Sachin way.....anything... Is baat par, Ye Dil Maange Kyaa More ??

sriramvr:
sriramvr@england.com: the class of sachin is such that it is like sachin(no.1),richards(no.2) .... a class character

Mahesh Chandrasekharan:
mahesh@idmb.tamu.edu: In my younger days as a kid, my scrapbook was filled with the deeds of numerous cricketers and moreover my late grandfather had given me tons of sportsweek and illustrated weekly issues on cricket. No doubt, there were Indian cricketers but many of us Indians held in awe foreign cricketers until Gavaskar and Kapil Dev emerged....but, even these legends were not the same as say a Bradman or a Sobers because there were Boycotts and Bothams around.... I longed for an Indian to be held in the same awe by the world of Cricket and for once, my dreams and wishes were answered...and lo behold! SACHIN TENDULKAR..... I am thrilled that he is only 26 because there is lot more to come...Now, I can proudly proclaim that for time to come people will see Sachin's glory just as I saw that footage of Bradman. As long as there is a clear blue sky, a green turf and a game called Cricket..people will NEVER forget..Sachin Tendulkar... Good wishes to Sachin so that he can thrill me more and Thank you god!!!

Guruprasad.S:
guruprasad@teil.soft.net: My heartiest congrats to Sachin for his 10 fine and successful years of International Cricket. With sheer brilliance,he has brought pure joy to his fans,over the world in general and India in particular. The debate between Mr.Aravind.L and Mr.Prem Panicker was well contested,but with the former resorting to more of statistics and less of qualitative reasoning,we lost a golden oppurtunity to witness a much keener one.

Though a great admirer of Tendulkar,and fully aware,that it is a futile exercise to compare two batsmen of different era,i would still like to suggest some points. Tendulkar is yet to play a matchwinning innings in Test cricket (he came close to that in Chennai against Pak,earlier this year),akin to what Mark Waugh had done against South Africa at Port Elizabeth in April 1997,or Brian Lara against Australia earlier this year in the 3rd Test (of the 4 Test series).
However ,i will put this down to the lack of oppurtinities for Indians to play overseas,less time for them to get used to those conditions,and of course,lack of support for Tendulkar at the other end,maybe. Also,even while coming to comparisions between players of the same era,only M.Waugh,B.Lara and A.DeSilva can perhaps come close to Tendulkar,not even S.Anwar,let alone G.Kirsten,who is consistent,but otherwise as dull and bland as they(Proteas) come(these days he is not even consistent,having had a miserable World cup in England). Arguments will continue,but lets savour the brilliance of Tendulkar, and wish him all the very best. Bye

a.tiwari:
a.tiwari@ic.ac.uk: Sachin is the greatest. I don't think even bradman could play one day cricket as well as he could, but I suppose we'll never know. I was lucky enough to be at the india kenya game in the world cup, and though it was not his greatest one day innings, It was a special moment for him and for all of us present, so i think it should be included in his best innings. And those two sharjah innings, I don't think you'll ever see a better display of a true indian heart, grit, determination, power and pure magic. I don't think anyone who saw those will ever forget them. His innings in south africa with azhr and his century against pakistan (which we unfortunatley lost) have to be incuded in all his top five innings, if for nothing, than just for how different they were, one pure attack, the other careful, sensible batting. Wish sachin all the best of luck for the future, but the thing is , he doesn't really need it, does he?

sathis:
shalu_sathis@usa.com: hi, sachin i want your photo. please send to me by e-mail. thanking you, yours ever lovingly, sathiskumar

sathis: shalu_sathis@usa.com: hi, sachin i want your photo. please send to me by e-mail. thanking you, yours ever lovingly, sathiskumar

vijay:
vijay_katukuri@hotmail.com: Shaking comes into bowler's hand, fear comes into bowl's heart when batting comes for little master's turn.

adi:
aahuja@gph.com: He has set his standards so high that we take his game for granted. The best way to get a grip on what he is to Indian cricket is imagining him in a different team....Aus or Eng perhaps....a scary thought, but does put things in perspective.

Raja: champs10@hotmail.com: Is there really a MATCH FIXING IN indian CRICKET, i just read that in CNN and home of cricket sites.

Madhu:
msreddy_c@yahoo.com: I don't have the words to say about sachin.As he is a very talented batsman and hope he will continue his form and makes every Indians happy... Best of luck Sachin...

balaji:
balaji160@apexmail.com: his best innings 143 against aus.,at sharjah(one day) 155* against aus., at chennai(tests). greatest cricketer i have ever seen. anecdote:to live as a very good human being in my life." rating as a crickter worldno:1 and captain: could be one amoung the best after a couple of years time. balaji.

Arun Raman:
arun@polysci.umass.edu: In my book, what Sachin brings to the game and to an Indian is more than the nuances of victory or defeat. All talk of whether or not he is the greatest ever can at best be only a hypothesis, since it makes no sense to compare quality players. What I feel when I see Sachin go out to bat is pride and respect. True, the game is played to be won, but when this guy is in, I really am happy enough watching him at work. No game can always be only about winning. For all our talk, India probably wouldn't even rate amongst the 4 best teams of the decade, but that I think is a different problem altogether. When you go out to a concert, you appreciate the performer and there is no question of a victory versus defeat. Sachin takes us to that plane. In a sport there are very few people who can make me forget the need for a win. Sachin is one. Michael Jordan was another.
* My favourite moment in Sachin's cricketing life was his decision to return from Mumbai to England after his father's funeral..........the report that said "Sachin flying back"
* Another top quality moment is being present in an Indian ground when he enters the field 2-drop in a Test innings......one can only be there to feel it !
* My favourite innings of his was his 135-odd against Pakistan in the Chennai test in a losing cause. I had the fortune of being present at Chepauk on that final day although not for the complete innings
* Other favourites include his 143 against Australia at Dhaka, his centuries in the League and final games against Australia in Sharjah '98 (I dint get to see those live), his century in Perth in 92 and his 42 against SA in Durban on the Safari tour (97, I think)
* Favorite quotes - "I don't need any further motivation than playing for India" "I don't try to satusfy other's expectations. I only try to satiisfy my own"

Needless to say my favourite player ever. He motivates me to work. As a Cricketer, one of the finest Quality, an excellent team man. As a Captain, still needs to mature............but there is no doubting that he is a genuine leader as far as my generation is concerned. I am happy to belong here. Arun

Arun:
mv_arun@hotmail.com: Sachin Tendulkar - Father of the Nation!!!.Thank you.

Lakshmanan subbiah:
lakshmanan_subbiah@yahoo.com: Like any oridinary Indian lad,i am also an ardent fan of sachin.My education has litreally seperated me from my star.As i am studying in the US,I AM NOT Blessed to watch this year's season.In my opinion the pinnacle of sachin's brilliance,determination and genious was clearly seen at sharjhah,when sachin scored two centuries in a row to demolish australia and to carry the cococola cup.

sunil:
gautams@ozemail.com.au: Do whatever you can to do full justice to your incredible talent. Captaincy or not, your greatness is etched in stone. Take all the ups and downs of the cricketing world in your stride and just bat....like only you can.

Mukund Ramadoss:
mukund.ramadoss@eng.sun.com: My favourite cricketing moment from Sachin's carreer so far, was when he picked up the ball to bowl the final over in the Hero cup Semifinal in 93/94.
SA needed 4 runs to win of the final over with a few wkts in hand. McMillan, one of the better alrounders in the World was batting at one end. There was a lot of discussions in the Indian camp. Azhar had to take the tough decision on choosing his bowler. The premier alrounder had a few overs in his quota. He reportedly refuse to bowl the last over. Sachin then offered to bowl himself.

When someone scores runs heavily in a match or in the previous match, the confidence of that person would be sky high. The player may have an aggressive outlook and maybe willing to take chances. But here, one has to remember, Sachin was going thru' a sort of lean patch. He wasn't amongst the runs and one has to admire his guts to agree to bowl the final over.

He was given the ball and he bowled splendidly to restrict SA and won the match for India. This, I feel is his greatest cricketing moment.

Ameya Kamat:
ameya_k@hotmail.com: Hi. My name is Ameya Kamat, and am originally from Mumbai, India although currently living in South Africa. The Sachin Tendulkar I see, is one of total brilliance. He is a quiet man, a glorious leader, and a great example/role model to his Indian people.

My favorite cricketing moment of his was clearly in the Cape Town test of 1997/98, where Sachin and Azhar hammered the South African bowling line-up to both make centuries in one session. Sachin especially gave Allan Donald the whipping of his life, which was truly incredible. I was fortunate enough to be present at that match, and what a match it was indeed.

I clearly think Sachin is the best cricketer of his time, and infact maybe one of the best of all time. However, as a captain he needs a bit more maturity, and hopefully one day he'll achieve that. Good Luck Sachin, hope you bring the next world cup to India. Jai Hind.

Senthil:
bmtsk@hotmail.com: Sachin Tendulkar, a cricketing super star in the world. Wish him all the best.

Shiva:
shiva@softel.com.sg: Hi Sachin, We wish you contribute more to our country. Shiva Shankar M

Shiva:

Shiva:
shiva@softel.com.sg: Hi Sachin, We wish you contribute more to our country. Shiva Shankar M

Saranga Pani Pogula:
saranga88@hotmail.com: A good example of consistent performance and brilliance. Highly disciplined and modest. Has lot of concentration on what he does and blessed with naturally excellent play.

A decade of brilliance:

Vinayak: vartak@usa.net: Dear Prem I read all yours and Harsha's articles since last month when I came to know of this site. I have also read all your past articles and I am referring to your article on Sachin's Knock against Australia at Madras.
I appreciate your articles for the depth of cricketing knowledge it exibits. I, however do not agree with your comments on Warne's move to go round the wicket. You have dubbed it as a negative tactics. Having made up your mind that it was a negative tactics, you went on to comment the same. You have explained the Leg side field for the "Round the Wicket Bowling" How did you omit the Point and Extra cover fielders waiting for the possible top edge resulting from sweeps or heaves through midwicket ? Besides, I thought it was an attacking and anticipated game plan which all of us were waiting.
I look forward to read your articles everyday since it describes the matches and its finer points in the most satisfactory manner. Do you have the collection of articles on SunnyGavaskar especially those written in the Sportsworld and Sportsweek on his retirement. I had preserved those issues but lost them during my transfer to Jakarta. Similarly do you have a description as reported on Sunny's last knock of 96 against Pak at Banglore. Is it possible to put it on the net ?

Similarly Harsha's article "Greek Tragedy" on India's defeat at Banglore was a masterpiece and if possible, could you put in on the net so that we could enjoy the same again and again ? Both of you have ability to express yourself in the most apt words and pl. continue to give us the pleasure of enjoying cricket through your pens. Thanks Vinayak

A. I.shaji:
shajiitt@.net.ae: Well done caption keep it up. my best wishes. shaji