Indian Cricket
Whither Tendulkar?
By Roy
June 24 2007
On a crisp morning in November 1989 when most teenagers were busy attending school, a sixteen year old walked onto the pitch in Karachi National Stadium donning Indian colours to face the likes of Imran Khan, Wasim Akram, Abdul Qadir and Waqar Younis. He did not set the field on fire but provided glimpses of what was to follow in world cricket.
Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar announced with his bat that a new star was born. Through
out the nineties and well into the 21st century he captivated millions with his
precocious ability with the bat drawing the ultimate accolade a batsman can
receive – being branded as the Don’s successor by none other than Late Sir
Donald Bradman himself.
However off late millions of fans around the
world are vexed by the transformation that has happened to him in Tests. From a
free flowing batsmen with all the strokes in the text book and out of it, he has
turned himself into a percentage player with a safety first attitude. Tendulkar
himself has attributed his change to an ageing body. But players like Lara and
Ponting only seem to get better with age. To be fair to him injuries have
plagued him in the last few years and mental scars from injuries can last long
after the physical symptoms are gone. But the problem with Tendulkar runs much
deeper.
Tendulkar’s batting style changed dramatically after the second
test in Australia 2003. He was getting decent starts but was falling to flashy
shots outside the off stump. He decided to cut out risky shots on the off side
and his 242 in the final test was slow and almost exclusively crafted on the on
side. Nobody thought much about it back then. But since Sachin has for some
reason decided to play percentage cricket arguably with an eye on preserving his
records intact for posterity.
To a fan of cricket taking a cursory
glance at Tendulkar’s record after the second test against Australia, the
difference is ever so subtle. He averages 54.10 post-Melbourne as compared to a
career average of 55.5 prior to that. However a closer look will reveal a
startling fact. If you take away Bangladesh from the equation, in 24 tests
Tendulkar’s average post Melbourne is 43.05. Something has seriously gone
somewhere. The more Tendulkar tries to play safe, the lower his batting average
gets against regular test playing nations. Is there a message that you are only
as good as your natural game?
By eschewing productive shots he is
depriving himself and the team of runs. Some shots are risky and if one is a
shot maker then chances are that one will fall not by the merit of the ball but
by playing a shot. The quality of a great batsman is to keep working and
improving those shots rather than cut them out from one’s repertoire. Tendulkar
needs to work on those long lost shots that the world of cricket was so used to
seeing from him.
Lastly he should not have fear for his records being
broken. Whether he likes it or not records will be broken in the future. That is
how it has been in any form of sport. Even Bob Beamon’s incredible albeit
altitude assisted long jump record was broken after 23 long years. The more he
deprives himself of his favourite off side shots or the pull the more likely
that he will lose it forever. Fans want to see the Tendulkar of old blazing away
on all cylinders and taking the bowlers to the cleaners. But the question is
will Tendulkar clear his mental cobwebs and oblige his fans to set up a fitting
finale to his career.
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though personally I think we as fans should realize that now he is in a different role...
Only problem is we have not found the new person to be in the DOMINANT Tendulkar role...so we keep hankering for the Tendulkar of old...
Maybe Yuvraj or even Rohit Sharma can fill that role in the future...?
_____
ICL Ko Support Karo Yaro...
BCCI Ko Joote Chappal Maro....
We must start grooming successors ASAP
_____
ICL Ko Support Karo Yaro...
BCCI Ko Joote Chappal Maro....
The bigger problem is that this average is going down to 31 if u c the last 3 years agianst non-minnows BL & ZIM(since 2004-10-01 as mentioned by Anu_D)..add to that the way he gets out or concedes initiative to bowling teams only adds to the frustrations..
plus his "I know my game" and "My body is old" type interviews, show his defeatist mentality, and accentuates the fact that instead of accepting faults & changing things for the better, he is looking for excuses..
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2007:06:24:17:45:46 by Indian well wisher.
Personal records couldn't concern or impress me less....
_____
ICL Ko Support Karo Yaro...
BCCI Ko Joote Chappal Maro....
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Tendulkar is the greatest cricketer of all time
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