THE LITTLE MASTER A TRUE HERO

Yes, Sachin has done it. The first batsman ever to reach the extraordinary Test target of 50 centuries.
It’s a record he may hold long into the future - perhaps always considering the state of Test cricket - with his nearest competitor, Ricky Ponting, back at the 39 mark. The record century, comprising one 6 and twelve boundaries, was gained in front of a buoyant Centurion South African crowd. How would you feel being Dale Steyn bowling to such a colossus?
Take a look at this Ten Sports exclusive video.
Once again Sachin looked to the skies as he achieved the almost impossible – there was no doubt he believed his father’s soul was looking on. In fact he made the comment:
"The first thing obviously I thought of was my father because I wanted to do it for him. Yesterday was his birthday, and I would like to dedicate this to him."
Of his remarkable achievements this year – 7 test centuries - Sachin has commented:
"I am playing for the love of it."
Harish Krishnamachari, the senior vice president of World Sports Group, the marketing firm that handles Sachin Tendulkar, is negotiating a multi-million deal signed between Tendulkar and Coca Cola .
“It (the 50th Test ton) doesn’t make any difference to Brand Sachin. In the last couple of years, he has reached a level where there’s no comparison. Anything he does will not impact the brand. People will just choose to look at what he’s up to next,’’ he said.
And with talk of Sachin’s admirable refusal of a beer sponsorship, he’s a sure thing not to be tempted to ruin his concentration on extreme fitness.
..................................................................................
Alas, I wasn’t lucky enough to be present to witness Sachin's historic feat – quite the opposite in fact – due to a prior commitment in hospital. And it seems timely that I leave this blog unattended for a couple of months with my feet up during the Christmas-New Year break, as it will take that long to heal my recently-broken leg.
In 3 weeks my leggings have gone from this:















to this, after surgery by a specialist referred to as ‘The King of Ankles’ in Sydney. And I can’t even boast I suffered the ‘maisonneuve’ fracture on a cricket pitch.
No disrespect to The Great Tendulkar - but I won’t be posting again anytime soon – though I will nevertheless be up and running when Sachin’s glorious goal of 15,000 Test runs is achieved – a record certain to be knocked over during the upcoming World Cup year.
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Searching for Sachin.
All best wishes for success in 2011 to the most extraordinary cricketer in the world, Sachin Tendulkar ....

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GALA FELICITATIONS

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Sachin’s power to impress almost beyond belief has not yet deserted him. Will it ever? We can only watch in wonder at his latest triumph, a double century and some.

On the Bangalore ground today he stood like a great tree in a forest, a tree on which all the lesser plants rely for protection. Or perhaps a block of granite, a soaring a pillar of security in the centre of his countrymen’s attack on their opponents. Until Tendulkar was defeated, Australia could not advance. As soon as he fell, his team crumbled to dust.


Even the manner of his defeat was appropriate to the occasion. Despite his vigilance, finally Tendulkar was taken by surprise by callow fast bowler, Peter George capturing his first Test wicket, an exceptional gift George will glory in his whole life long.

What drives Sachin? The pursuit of excellence? A competitive nature that insists that the Commonwealth Games will not outshine his own and India’s favoured sport, cricket?

He’s a marvel. His score was accrued through diligence, patience and great attention to detail. His score of 214 runs comprised 92 singles and 11 twos. Even so, in 363 balls he also impressed with 22 boundaries and two amazing sixes. This his 6th double century was a scorcher!

Along with millions around the world, Ricky Ponting surely couldn’t help but feel moved to witness Sachin’s purple patch, so that now he can only call on his teammates, ‘Play up, play up and play the game’.

For, in the spirit of high competition and the example of Sachin as a model of excellence, tomorrow is another day ... another chance for all to excel, Australians especially.

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Copyright C V Williams.

SACHIN’S 49TH TON

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Sachin Tendulkar has scored his 49th Test century – reinforcing his standing as world batting record-holder.

Not long to wait for another Sachin century is what I wrote in this morning’s blog!

Howzatt!!! No, not out. He's very much in.

With batting partner Murali Vijay, Sachin’s doggedness took India to 224 by lunch today in reply to Australia's 478 in the second and final Test in Banglaore.

Sachin Tendulkar, also the record-holder with 46 one-day hundreds, reached his 49th Test ton with 15 boundaries and two sixes in the morning’s play.

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Waiting, waiting, waiting ....

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Great work Sachin!
Nearly there ... 14,000 down and 1,000 to go.

Ever since I started 'Searching for Sachin', I’ve been waiting – for the magical number 15,000 to roll around.
That’s the number for the total Test runs Sunil Gavaskar told Sachin he expected from him, based on his talent many moons ago.
In the first Test in Mohali recently Sachin was edging toward a ton, sitting primed on 98, and smiling – he couldn’t help from smiling in anticipation, as everyone around him was grinning too – and then it happened – he got ahead of himself, lost concentration for a second, and BOOM ... he was out.
Oh dear – I was expecting to write a new blog about his magnificent play – but decided to WAIT until his next century, surely not too far away. Sachin will no doubt be chastising himself about that slip up, I thought, and he’ll be taking steps to correct this imperfection.
So - not another century in the last couple of weeks, but plenty else.
During this time Sachin has received high praise from many quarters.
First, Australian cricket writer, Peter Roebuck, showered him with plaudits (SMH Oct 8), putting the secret to his success down to staying focussed on the ball. Not a new idea – but certainly worth canvassing again, as Sachin’s powers of concentration are legendary.
Roebuck also pointed to a ‘more vital’ reason for his success, which again is not a new concept, but it’s worth remembering that it is an essential for the longevity of his winning approach – and that is that Sachin still loves cricket and he loves to bat.
And Roebuck has had many opportunities to witness this love affair with the ball over the years:
‘Tendulkar loves the game. Even after all these years, all these grounds, hotels, fielding drills and press conferences, it’s not an effort for him to play or practise. Cricket is his game and his way of life. He does not need anything else.’
Roebuck reckons the most underestimated thing about Sachin is his longevity, his constancy.
But others were similarly impressed, resulting in Sachin scoring the most sought after ‘The Sir Garfield Sobers Cricketer of the Year' ICC Award. Sachin totted up 1,000 Test runs this year, as well as becoming the first man to score a double hundred in ODI cricket.

Not only that, he remains our popular hero, also winning the ‘LG People's Choice Award.'
'Better late than never,’ was Sachin’s laconic response at the award ceremony, expanding slightly to praise the team, in particular V.V.S. Laxman and Ishant Sharma.
Now let’s not say, ‘Oh that’s great for a 37 year old’. In fact it’s great for a player of any age – and that’s how Sachin wants to be judged, not as a veteran player holding up well, looking towards retirement. He doesn’t look anywhere except where the next ball is coming from. It’s those around him who have been harping on about what might cause his retirement.
But Sachin’s not going anywhere, at least until he gets those magic 15,000 Test runs under his bat.
Yesterday he crossed the last thousandth increment before his interim goal of 14,000 Test runs, with a cut off the bowling of Australia’s Nathan Hauritz at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bangalore.
And this stage between 13,000 and 14,000 runs has involved the fewest number of innings of all the stages!
‘Better than ever,’ cricinfo declared, as crichotline hailed ‘India's all time great Sachin Tendulkar’ as ‘the only person to scale the 14000 peak’.
‘Sachin Tendulkar reaches 14,000 Test runs landmark,’ Britain’s The Guardian trumpeted.
‘Still sprightly,’ Sydney’s SMH Daniel Brettig was disrespectful enough to say – clearly too partisan about Australia’s position, mean-spirited and blind to the significance of Sachin’s achievement. [The error of this Australian chauvinism being corrected in part here, and with Roebuck's insightful praise, I would hope.]
And The Times of India acknowledged the enormity of the physical feat: ‘Tendulkar scales Mount 14,000 in Tests’.
I can only wait with bated breath for the World Cup and Sachin’s 15,000 goal to come. WORTH WAITING FOR ....
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What’s Up? What’s Going Down – more like ...

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Another day of international cricket – another day of allegations of match-fixing, specifically spot-fixing.
Who can take the game seriously? That is when, after all the hours of practice, every day, every year from the time a youngster is introduced to the thrill of taking a wicket or hitting a sixer, the adult form of the game is in danger of becoming a mockery and fraud? When the physical skill and mental strength needed to win at international level are treated with such disrespect by players and entrepreneurs (let’s give them a euphemism) so that the honour of the game comes into question – not once but multiple times in a number of countries – then it’s time to take severe disciplinary action against the perpetrators of this period of shame.
The Pakistani Cricket Board Chairman Ijaz Butt has accused English cricketers of a conspiracy involving "august cricket bodies", following England’s loss in the latest ODI at The Oval. It also follows the British tabloid sting operation on a bookie who allegedly paid money to three Pakistani cricketers, Test skipper Salman Butt and pacers Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Amir for bowling no-balls during the recent Lord’s Test. The three have been suspended from play by the ICC.
Chairman Butt says he’ll soon reveal the names of the people, the parties and the bodies involved in the conspiracy.
So what does all this have to do with Sachin Tendulkar? Absolutely nothing. Nothing at all.
The only common denominator is cricket itself – a game that historically, through the prowess of players of the highest order, has been the source of great sportsmanship and camaraderie, which has in turn led to a breaking down of many class, race and national barriers.
So let’s not have them re-erected.
Sachin himself has come out in favour of action against any players found guilty of involvement in fixing.
Early this month he said the ICC should make ‘a thorough probe into the spot-fixing allegations and take appropriate action if players are found guilty’.
‘If the allegations are true, they will certainly bring disrepute to the game.’
“In my 21 years of international cricket, I have never heard of an Indian player being approached by bookies,” Tendulkar stated.
Sachin also took the unusual move of reminiscing a little about his career, in particular recalling the first press conference of his career as Man of the Match in the second Test against England in 1990.
‘It was at Old Trafford. I was very awkward and I did not know what to do as that was my first press conference. I asked my teammates what kind of questions I might face and how should I answer them. The coach then was Bishen Singh Bedi and he told me, “Don’t get nervous, be confident and do whatever you want,”’ he said.
‘I have been a shy guy and most of the time I prefer to look down when I speak to somebody. I would not look up at the eye of the other person. But I think I have changed, though not much. I have now a sort of comfort level,’ he said.
‘When I was young there were problems initially as people think I am snobbish as I don’t speak out much. They think I am not interested in the things happening around,’ he went on to explain.
Sachin said his first tour of Australia in 1991-92, where he scored two Test centuries, gave him a sense of satisfaction.
He said there were phases in his career when he felt he was doing really well. These included the first tour of Australia in 1991-92, his performance from 1994-96, and in 2003, as the World Cup that year was memorable.
‘The last three years also I think I have done well,’ he said.
Tendulkar said he had been guided well by his family and had never been complacent in his career.
‘It is easy to lose your head. You have been dreaming to get something for a long time and you get it, naturally, it will have some effect on you.’
‘But I think I have never been complacent. There was a time when I was a 16-year-old I could have been affected but from my childhood I have been told by my parents not to take anything for granted. So my approach has been if I score a hundred, then forget it and think of scoring 150 in the next match,’ he said.
Australian cricket captain Ricky Ponting departed Australia yesterday for India to prepare for two Tests and three ODIs beginning on October 1st. He told the media that he doesn’t expect miracles from his team, but does expect a very high level of performance over the next few weeks.
All above board between the Indian and Australian teams on and off the field, once again, we hope and trust.
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Steady as she goes in the lead-up to the World Cup

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Just a couple of weeks after being elected Vice President of the ICC, Alan Isaac is proving the best candidate for the job.

Keeping a low key profile, Isaac by all accounts has remained non-inflammatory and fair in decision-making as he goes about CCI business.

It’s a stance in keeping with the decorum expected of the position, and in tune with his experience as a cricket administrator and former captain of Wellington's second XI, and then NZC Chairman since 2008.

"I am looking forward to serving our great sport at international level and protecting the primacy of international cricket," Isaac commented after he got the unanimous nod from the ICC executive board and the full ICC council.

After all, that’s what the job’s about.

"I'd like to think I'm judged on what I achieve or what I don't achieve in two, three or four years' time," he said.

So we can only wait to witness the resilience of Test cricket in the face of the popularity juggernaut of the IPL, and observe the role the ICC plays in fostering international agreement in the best interests of the game.

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CONGRATULATIONS SACHIN!!!

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'It has taken me 20-plus years to get here.’

And yes, Sachin says he’s ‘quite pleased’.

After almost 21 years of Test play, Tendulkar has broken through this long-standing record to become the most capped player of all time with 169 Tests to his name.

The record-breaking, groundbreaking (but not bat-breaking) event occurred today on P Sara Oval in Colombo, Sri Lanka, in the 3rd Test between the two neighbouring South Asian cricketing-rival countries.

But in terms of this most precious record, it was a cricket great from Australia, Steve Waugh - holding the world record of 168 Test caps - who must have been on Sachin’s mind.

On reaching the record, Sachin had scored 13,742 Test runs, including a record 48 centuries, and 17,598 runs in ODIs. He had also taken nearly 200 wickets in international cricket using a variety of bowling styles.

‘The rest of things can be achieved, but for this you need an X number of years, an X number of tours. That's when this thing happens.

‘And I am quite pleased. It has taken me 20-plus years to get here.’

Sachin said his Test career had gone quicker than he expected. Considered a respected elder while also still a champion, he had some words of wisdom to share with young cricketing hopefuls.

‘You just need to enjoy it; it's a circle.

‘You are not always on the top, sometimes there are rough patches, but the simple formula that I have followed is, whenever I have gone through tough phases, I have found a reason to work harder.'

And he tries to 'spend all my energy at something I have been wanting to get better at’.

Sachin said that after his first Test match in 1989, he thought he might not be able to play again. And he’s very happy to have had ‘this privilege of such a long journey at the international level’. Over his Test career he’s missed 14 matches.

Sachin put some of his success down to pre-match preparation.

‘Sometimes I was able to achieve results, sometimes I wasn't, but my preparations were always there.’

Perhaps by missing the final day’s play of the 2nd Test due to a groin strain, Sachin was able to concentrate even harder on pre-match preparation. Thank God this is a man who is determined to override whatever physical strain he suffers – whether persistent, serious or niggling. Given time Sachin has risen above the physical dimension.

‘Really proud of it,’ is how Sachin described his success – and we’re really proud of you too, Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar. You're a credit to your parents!

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NOT AN INSULT

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Speaking as an Australian, I feel absolutely no insult over the rejection of John Howard as Deputy President of the ICC. None whatsoever. And many of my cricket-loving compatriots feel the same way.

I agree with Peter Roebuck's decription of John Howard as 'an outsider uninvolved in cricket'.

Why should Howard have been nominated? Certainly not on the basis of his provocative comments about Muttiah Muralitharan's bowling action. It was none of his business.

Let's keep conservative politicians in their place - as spectators - and leave sport to talented sports men and women.

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FOR CRICKET STATS FREAKS

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OVER TO YOU AGAIN THIS WEEK, JEREMY GILLING, STATISTICIAN EXTRAORDINAIRE. Your observations of the game are mircoscopic, intense and possibly prophetic when you ask...

'Has chasing down a big fourth-innings target become easier in recent years? If so, does that mean the team batting third needs to be more cautious in setting a fourth-innings target?

Analysis of fourth-innings results over the years suggests that the answer to both questions is yes. The past decade has seen seven fourth-innings scores of 400+ (two of them to win, and in the process eclipse all past winning fourth-innings totals) and 14 of 380+. The entire 134 years of Test cricket have featured just 18 fourth-innings scores of 400+ and 25 of 380+. (Yes, that’s right: every fourth-innings score between 380 and 399 has occurred since 2000.)

It is also clear that the “par” fourth innings target – the score where the odds of getting the runs are about 50:50 – has risen sharply in the past decade.
To demonstrate this, I’ve divided the Test era into eight periods: the nineteenth century; the two pre-war eras of the twentieth century; the post-WW2 years to 1970; and each of the subsequent four decades. These periods seem to strike a reasonable balance between durations and numbers of Tests played, and also form a fairly natural epochal divide.

Of the 1959 Tests played to date (to the end of the England-Bangladesh series), 936 have produced a fourth-innings result (including the two ties, but excluding draws).
I’ve calculated the “par” fourth-innings score for each of these eight periods as the closest fit to the score for which the probability of the batting team reaching a target above that score equals that of the fielding team defending a target below that score. For example, for the 38 eligible Tests played in the nineteenth century, the fourth innings target was 169 or more for 14, and these targets were achieved four times, or 29 per cent of the time. On the other hand, the fourth innings target was 151 or less for 24 Tests, and these targets were successfully defended seven times, also 29 per cent of the time. The par score is the average of 151 and 169, or 160.

BATTING EASIER?

As batting became easier after 1900, and easier again between the wars, so the par score increased – to 216 in the pre-WW1 years and 258 in the interwar period. It then fell back to 235 for the 25 years to 1970, and 227 for the following decade, before jumping again, to 261, in the 1980s.

Then in the 1990s the par score collapsed to a level not witnessed since before WW1. But even more dramatic was the rise in the most recent decade – a 64-run jump to 283. Suddenly, in defiance of decades of accepted wisdom, batting in the fourth innings seems to have become not much more difficult than in the first three innings.

Now it could fairly be said that batting generally seems to be easier these days, and the table bears this out to some extent. Runs per wicket in all innings of all Tests, at 34.62, is at an historic high – more than 10 per cent up on the previous decade. (No doubt high-tech bats, smaller playing areas, and perhaps also greater physical fitness – enabling batsmen to concentrate better for longer – have a lot to do with it.) But even allowing for this – as I’ve done by dividing the par score by the runs per wicket figure – it’s clear that the chasing team has an easier task than at any time since the early twentieth century.

My Table reveals other interesting trends. The first two periods to the outbreak of WW1 saw plenty of upsets – teams were able to chase down an above-par target, or defend a below-par target, more than a quarter of the time. By contrast, in the interwar period, most matches followed the script – just 7 per cent of above-par targets were chased down, and only 10 per cent of below-par targets defended.
From then on the pattern has stabilised, with consistently between one in seven and one in nine Tests not conforming to expectations.

WEIGH IT UP

Is all this a good or bad thing? On balance, I think the game is the poorer now that the final-day drama of batsmen fighting for survival against spinners in their element is being steadily lost. Misbehaving fifth-day pitches are a rich part of cricket lore. Do we really want Test matches to follow the same tempo throughout the five days?'

For a copy of Jeremy's detailed Table of the basis for his conclusions above, email cvwananda.com.au NOW!

Jeremy reckons his detailed analysis has only been possible with Ric Finlay’s dazzling, and very affordable, Tastats Test cricket software, available through www.tastats.com.au.

And that's as close to an advertisement as this column is ever going to go.

Copyright Jeremy Gilling.

See you soon - hopefully with some fresh Sachin material!

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BRETT LEE'S FRIENDLY TAKE ON SACHIN TENDULKAR: "a big kid"

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Putting a premium on taking wickets

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According to cricinfo this shot is one of an invisible (yet handsome, you'll have to take my word for it) Ewen Chatfield stretchered off after nearly being killed on the cricket field, in a Test match against England in 1975. Pre-helmet days, Chatfield reportedly swallowed his tongue after being hit unconscious on the temple by a bouncer from English fast bowler Peter Lever. Chatfield, a 'New Zlnd' medium-pace bowler himself, was revived by heart massage.

As a digression once again distracts me from the main focus of this blog - which of course will always remain Sachin Tendulkar - I'm inviting contributions from the cognoscenti on a number of aspects of contemporary cricket which often incite heated debate. So, to begin this week, let's hear it from amateur cricket statistician and 'the Ewen Chatfield of Sunday social cricket', Jeremy Gilling, writing as himself:

Putting a premium on taking wickets
by Jeremy Gilling

Christine has kindly offered me space for an irregular column in which I air a few suggestions for revamping cricket in both its long and short versions. I begin with the one-day (50-over) format.

It is clear that the 50-over game in its present configuration is slowly dying. Crowds for this once hugely popular form of entertainment are down almost everywhere, calamitously so in its domestic manifestation. Most games follow a script that has become tediously familiar. The rules are made ever more artificial and byzantine in an effort to reinvigorate the game, with further tinkering in prospect.

The heart of the problem, in my view, is that, unlike in the traditional unrestricted overs version of the game, wickets don’t count for nearly as much as runs. Worse, the value of a wicket declines sharply as the innings progresses, and is often next to worthless in the last handful of overs. Conversely, batting becomes ever more recklessly extravagant as the overs tick down. The end of innings slog must break the purist’s heart.

A resultant problem is that there’s little room for tactical subtlety. Field settings are dictated by the rules and the stage of the innings. You can even reliably predict who will be asked to bowl when, and what line and length they’ll bowl. Bowlers try to bowl as wide of the off stump as they can get away with without being called. Even deliberate full tosses have their place. It would be sad if it wasn’t so dreary.

My proposal is simplicity itself. Give the batting side 10 bonus runs for each wicket intact at the end of their innings. At the same time, do away with the power play – and perhaps (after the innovation’s been trialled for a while), abolish all limited-overs field restrictions (in other words, scrap the fielding circle – the only restrictions in place would be those that apply in first-class cricket). You could probably even scrap the one-day wide rule.

This reform – which would only apply in games that run their full length (the Duckworth-Lewis formula already allows for wickets lost) – would I think transform the game by bringing wicket-taking back to the fore throughout the innings.

Now suddenly batsmen have to place a value on their wicket at every stage of the game (just like in Test cricket), and will bat accordingly. The ugly crossbat slog – and that dreadful step to leg to hit over the top of covers – will become a thing of the past. Strokeplayers will replace bashers. Bowlers will mix attack and containment just as in a Test (and attacking bowlers will supersede medium-pace trundlers). Captains will balance attack and defence in setting fields.

It would also solve the problem of the tedious middle stage from around over 15 to over 35, which even the administrators have finally recognised is killing the game, where there’s an implicit truce between the batsmen and bowlers: we’ll give you 4 to 5 runs an over so long as you just bunt the ball down to long on and long off for singles.

But the best thing about this proposal is that it would introduce complexity and intrigue into the limited overs game, and require everyone – batsmen, bowlers, captains (and of course spectators/viewers and commentators) – to have their wits about them at every stage of the innings. Suppose, for example, that side A scores 5-250 in their 50 overs (= 300 with the bonus). After 40 overs, side B is 3-200. Under the present rules, that would be a cakewalk for side B – just plod along for 5 overs without losing more than a couple of wickets, then throw the bat. But now, under this proposed format, both sides have to think strategically. Side B will have to decide whether to aim for 31 runs in 10 overs if they’re good enough to keep all wickets intact (remember that side A will be attacking, not just containing), or 41 runs losing just 1 wicket, or 51 losing 2 wickets ... And side A will be making exactly the same calculations. Not only that, but every time a wicket is lost, they’ve got to reappraise their tactics.

Another example: side A scores 5-250 as before, and side B is 5-248 after 49 overs. Game over under the present rules, but under my suggestion, side A still has a real chance – if they can take a wicket before side B scores 3 runs, everything changes. (And just to add a soupçon of spice, you could say that the game stays alive even if side B scores 3 runs off the first ball – that they still have to play out the last five balls without losing a wicket.)

Let’s try it out in the Australian interstate competition next season – we’ve nothing to lose, after all; the game as it stands is dead in the water. I can see only one problem with this suggestion. Channel 9 and Fox Sports would have to hire some intelligent, numerate people as commentators, and I’ve no idea where they’d find them.

Jeremy's next column will be about restructuring the Test championship. Comments welcome from those stirred up by Jeremy's proposal. Please feel free to let fly - & if you have difficulty logging comments on here, email me at cvwananda@gmail.com

In the meantime, next week we'll have a photo and commentary offering on the subject of the great Sachin Tendulkar from Marcus Couto (CCI) et al.

Copyright for main article Jeremy Gilling.
Ewen Chatfield pic 1st Test, Auckland, February 24, 1975 was reproduced on cricinfo www.cricinfo.com/ci/content/image/343409.html with permission from The Cricketer International.
Pic of Jeremy Gilling, not as brave as Chatfield but obviously a little worse for wear while not prepared to don his whites on a cycle trip in Vietnam about 30 years after Chatfield's close shave with death. No connection exists between the two photgraphs as far as I can see, except that Jeremy, as a young lad, must have admired Chatfield to describe himself comparatively.

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Cricket writer Sumit Mukherjee again - best buddies?

Sumit, who so kindly sent me word about the babe-in-blue pics, has a snapshot of his own he's allowing me to share with you all.
So, what did you say that set Sachin grinning, I asked him?
'Can I enrol for long-distance learning?'

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Sachin's Life Beyond Cricket

Can it be true? That Sachin has a life outside of cricket? Now we have evidence of at least some passing interests & adventures - as well as a devout attention to family & friends ...
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/babes_in_blue/ reveals several pleasing pastimes. Sent to us compliments of Sumit Mukherjee.

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...& spirituality, sacred blossoms and all.




It has crossed my mind though that the photo of the man in the blue Nike shirt with headphones, 5th pic from the top, is not actually Sachin. What do you think?
I guess you've also well & truly caught up with the news that Sachin has taken to twittering. You can join the thousands who are tuning in directly: a/c@sachin_rt
75,000 followers on the first day, I'm told! Many more are following now ...

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CONGRATULATIONS TO CHENNAI IN IPL FINAL VICTORY

“Sachin’s captaincy and leadership has been remarkable. … Overall, it has been a wonderful team effort.”

Mumbai Indians’ coach Robin Singh looks on the positive - quoted on the MI website following Chennai Super Kings' win over MI by 22 runs in the IPL final.

Pic from Mumbai Indians' website.

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MANY HAPPY RETURNS

Happy Birthday Sachin

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Both pics generously supplied to ESPN cricinfo by the IPL.

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I'm Back - & 'All is well'

'Where the bloody hell are you?' a few of my loyal blog readers have been asking. Not watching Michael Clarke in NZ, not giving you some info from my interview with Brett Lee as promised last time, nor even searching for Sachin.

Instead I've been in Sydney preparing for and then enduring a pacemaker operation under the special surgeon's hands of Dr Bruce Walker, a wizard. And feeling grateful to the universe for another chance at a healthy life.

So, to a current issue - and yes, I will get back to Brett Lee on Sachin Tendulkar sometime soon. First I want to canvas the question of whether any Australians of non-Indian origin would ever share - or even understand - the sacred status that Sachin holds in Indian society (even while made up as it is of many cultures & religions).

Midday ran a story this week on Marcus Couto, of CCI fame, and his brother, Ricky, a close friend of Sachin - and the way Sachin remains unaffected by fame, having recently greeted Marcus "with the same affection as he did as a schoolboy cricketer."

Marcus then came in for a bit of stick, in an email letter which criticised Sachin for, among other things, not having "grown up".

I would have ignored the correspondent's simplistic invective, but Marcus replied in a manner both measured and heartfelt, as you'll see below.

So what do you think? We treat our cricketers pretty rough, eh? None has achieved saint status - not even the great Donald Bradman, although 'Sir' was a clear mark of respect. Are Australians still tall poppy hackers inhabiting a godless land? Do you agree with Marcus or are you of a more sceptical mind?

Throughout the ages, mankind has been visited by rare individuals whose sole purpose is the spiritual upliftment of humanity. Jesus Christ was one of these visitors, as were Shakyamuni Buddha and Mohammed. These three are well known to us, but there are many others whose names we do not know; some taught publicly, and were known by a few, and others remained anonymous. These individuals were called by different names, at different times, in different countries. They have been referred to as: Ascended Masters, Avatar, Enlightened One, Savior, Messiah, Divine Mother, Messenger, Guru, Living Saint, and the like. They came to offer us what has been called: Enlightenment, Salvation, Realization, Liberation, or Awakening. The words used may be different, but in essence they all mean the same thing. Sachin to me is very close to all these.

If there are gods and idols for every thing specially in India, why not have a cricket God. Some great Cricketer already call him God.
I think, it would be too small an honour for him of Bharat Ratna. He should be given the title of Sir and if I had a dream and was given the power of the Pope at least I would have done on him living Canonization. I am aware this is bit too much to dream of but again it's my dream......and I shall be happy if it remains so.

Marcus

I know many Indians who thought of the philosopher, Jiddu Krishnamurti, as being as exceptional as Jesus Christ - yet the idea is laughable in a secular Australian context. Deeply-held beliefs may never be expressed while people engage in the inane utterances that social repartee demands yet lack of expression doesn't diminish one's faith. How sacred is Sachin, do you think?

(Reference to 'All is well' from 3 idiots. Photo credit to Midday & Pradeep Dhivar - pls inform me if I need authorisation to use this photo without payment so I can take it down immediately.)
Til next week, I hope.

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Not God ... But Blessed, Truly Blessed

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Double Century Victory
(Pic credit cricinfo)

Sachin's record-breaking 200 runs. (Pic credit cricinfo)

(Earlier in the game, with Karthik, Sachin reaches 50. Pic credit cricinfo)

Imagine ... a double century! The first ever in the 50-over form of the game. And who else but Sachin Tendulkar to achieve it? Reaching his double century at Gwalior tonight against South Africa, Sachin, with his bat in one hand and his helmet in the other, stretches his arms towards the heavens, giving thanks. 200 runs not out, in India's first innings score of 3 for 401, with batting partner Dhoni scoring 64. The double century was scored with a single run off the third ball in the last over, from a Dale Steyn delivery. During the game Sachin hit 25 boundaries and 3 sixes. Embodying magnificence itself!

Almost impossible to get through to cricinfo to see the victory .... meltdown from worldwide acclaim.

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Let’s get it straight: ‘He is not God’

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This week a mixed bag. First a poetic dedication to Sachin, then Brett Lee’s career decision, then a statement from the Australian Cricketers’ Association hot off the press, and conjecture about how the IPL intends to face terrorist threats.

Our poem is a pure-of-heart sample of the devotion Sachin Tendulkar inspires in so many young people in India today …..

Sachin Tendulkar
by David Wesley

He is not God
And that tells a lot

There have been, are, great men
And greater to come

Compared, matched, weighed
Each with the other

Some emerge better
Others much and few
Others not less

Only that he lost it to God
And that tells a lot.

(Poem first published earlier this month on ‘Open Window’, a student poetry wall at the University of Madras.)

And on the topic of admiration for Sachin Tendulkar, let’s move to a current story: fast bowler Brett Lee’s decision to retire from Test cricket, ahead of his full statement to be released this Friday. An agonising decision for Lee, no doubt, made no easier by the prospect of security threats to the IPL competition, which he might have hoped would offer at least financial compensation for this disappointment over injuries keeping him from resuming his once-primary place in the Australian Test squad.

Next week I’ll use further excerpts from an interview I conducted with Brett Lee last year, but this week I’ll give you just a teaser…. This is part of what Lee had to say about Sachin:

‘I believe Sachin Tendulkar has had a massive influence not only on Indian cricket but around the world. Anyone who knows anything about cricket has heard of Sachin. India has a population of 1.3 billion, increasing by 20 million per year, and he is known by everyone. He’s virtually a prisoner in his own country – the biggest name known. He and Donald Bradman will always be known as the greatest batsmen. What he’s done – playing so long and achieving so much in cricket – is a credit to him.’

Perhaps Brett Lee’s decision this week is in some small part a considered response to the security risk of travelling with a troupe of national Test cricketers, all accommodated in the one ritzy multi-star hotel, so that he’s decided to adopt a more low-key approach. Not that he, as a blondie, could ‘blend in’ among the 1.3 billion Indian population, but acting as an independent cricketer selling his skills to entertain the Indian fans might be viewed more benignly than acting as a national representative. Who can know the psychology and rationale adopted by terrorist organisations? In any case, he’s stated his unstinting admiration for India’s stalwart innings-maker, and for this he might be protected by the mass of Indians who not only admire Sachin Tendulkar but also Brett Lee’s abilities when he’s in good form, as well as, in turn, respecting Brett Lee’s admiration of Sachin.

The Australian Cricketers’ Association has tonight issued a statement raising some doubt about the prospect of Australian cricketers participating in this year’s IPL in India.

Chief Executive Paul Marsh said the independent security report commissioned by the Player Associations of Australia, England, New Zealand and South Africa had identified some serious concerns with aspects of the current security situation around the 2010 IPL event

‘It is important to reinforce that players want to play in this year’s IPL,’ he said.

Marsh said that, ‘specifically the concerns relate to the reported direct threat against the event and the status and implementation of the IPL’s security plan’.

‘The process from here is for all Player Associations to meet with their player groups and for all of us to feed back the concerns raised from these meetings to the IPL, coordinated through our peak body, the Federation of International Cricketers Associations (FICA).

‘From here we will await a response from the IPL,” Marsh said.

Until next week – and more from Brett Lee…

Copyright cvwilliams. As is obvious, all credit to The Times for the pic.
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Searching Sachin - Finding Federer

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Okay – I know I told you I’d be distracted this past week at the Australian Open Tennis Championship, but I didn’t say I’d have a front row seat! Watching the Williams sisters (no, despite the surname, they’re not relatives of mine) in the Margaret Court Arena, I found the seating intimate enough to see what many in the British press considered scandalous about Venus’s outfit. But we all have bodies, and many of us uncover particular parts of our bodies while sunbaking without turning a hair – so to speak. So what’s the big deal? Sisterhood is powerful – and the Williams brand of sisterhood is more powerful than most, including that of Cara Black (Zimb) & Liezel Huber (USA), as the Williams' stats verify:

Venus & Serena were doubles champions for the 4th time and Serena claimed the singles championship, in her 12th grand slam singles win and 5th Australian Open singles title. Serena acknowledged Billie Jean King – watching in the stand – as her ‘big mentor’ as she equalled King’s record for singles titles. And Margaret Court, herself a 24 time grand slam singles champion, presented Serena with the Australian Open trophy.

The-Big-Daddy-of-them-all-winner was, of course, Roger Federer. Did anyone ever doubt it? 6-3, 6-4, 7-6 (13-11). I think Andy Murray’s stand-out quote indicates he has at last learnt some humility from Federer, not only about tennis rallies, but also about the need to acknowledge greatness deserved: ‘I can cry like Roger. It’s a shame I can’t play like him.’

Federer’s win exploded the myth that having children can pull back a champion’s achievements – at least for men, anyway. Fluid, graceful, powerful in turning his sporting profession into an art form – qualities shared by Sachin, don’t we agree?

And while we’re on the subject of Indian sportsmen, I guess you heard that India’s Leander Paes won the Australian Open mixed doubles with partner Cara Black in straight sets 7-5, 6-3. Incidentally, Paes was born the same year as Sachin, 1973.

ANSWERS TO LAST WEEK’S PHOTO QUIZ: Sydney Cricket Ground 2008, photo thanks due to Christopher Baron.

See you next Monday - and back to normal routine with the focus squarely on Tendulkar.

Copyright cvwilliams.
Photos The Australian Women’s Register, Getty Images @ Australian Open online, WWOS.

PHOTO GUESSING COMPETITION

This week I'm once again a little distracted - this time by the tennis ... namely, the Australian Open in Melbourne. But not forgetting my beloved bat boy, nor my beloved fans of my beloved bat boy, I'm posting two photographs of said beloved bat boy here & now ...
The questions are (a) in which city were the photos taken, and (b) in what year were the photos taken? Don't worry about the 'Who took the photos?' question as it's probably too hard. I'll let you know the answers to all three questions next week.
See you Monday Feb 1st - once Shane W. has settled into his ambassadorial role in support of Indian (and all other) students all over the world ... Go Warney! And, of course, go Sachin! & congratulations on your 45th Test century!

Copyright cvwilliams.

Loyalty and Pride

Sachin's riposte to what turned out to be Shakib Al Hasan's polite enquiry in Chittagong today. [Photo AFP]

So congratulations and felicitations, Sachin. It’s no surprise that you decided against taking part in the tri-series in Bangladesh and also against joining Middlesex for the domestic Twenty20 Cup this summer – to save yourself for the best of the best, especially next year’s World Cup.

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