In 1996, my father unintentionally started my cricket mania by subscribing to a sports channel which telecasted the 1996 Cricket World Cup....and Hey Presto!! I saw a tiny plump man with curly hair wearing pads almost half his size, hitting the ball all over the ground. I had heard a lot about God through numerous mythological stories till that instant! (after all who can miss the good old Amar Chithra Kathas!!!). But I got a glimpse of Sachin Tendulkar, the Indian cricketer who was on the pathway of achieving 'true awesomeness' (as Barney Stintson would put it).
That day changed my interests overnight. Suddenly I started begging my mother to buy kilos of Boost ( I cant remember when i switched to coffee as a kid!! Hated cows and hence 'milk'). Whenever i saw a MRF advertisement , there was this sudden excitement. Needless to say, I felt the need for intravenous injections of Pepsi!!I felt the need to have a VISA card more than an ID card! Now i am trying to have an all ADIDAS wardrobe!!
From 1996 to 2010 (basically my entire childhood!), the journey has been fantastic courtesy Sachin Tendulkar!
Consider the fact that when he comes out to bat, more than a billion people are glued to their seats.
Consider the fact that he gets the loudest cheer in any ground all over the world, thus negating the away disadvantage for India!
Consider the fact that when he scores a century, there are evidences of seismic activity on the Richter Scale due to a whole lot of ridiculously happy Indians jumping about their places.
Consider the fact that when he is on 99, the Universe comes to a stand still!! (When Mumbai is quiet, the Universe is quiet).
Consider the fact that he probably faces more pressure than the U.S President in terms of huge expectations from billions of people!
Consider the fact the he averages slightly over 38 in a season when he is in miserable form!!
Consider the fact that when he is dismissed, more than a billion hearts stop beating for a fleeting moment!
This should sum up the greatness of the humble Legend 'Sachin Tendulkar'.
Imagine a world without Sachin Tendulkar!
- An alter ego i.e Virender Sehwag would have never been created in the first place!
- Kris Srikanth would have remained as India's most attacking batsman excluding the Pakistan games where N.S.Sidhu easily took the cake!
- We would have seen Vinod Kambli in the Boost ad!! (last thing i want to see is a man with a crazy french beard crying and drinking Boost!)
- Tony Greig would have probably been a very boring commentator.
- We would have never heard the end of Sunil Gavaskar's exploits during live match commentary thanks to Sunny himself!
- Ajit Agarkar would have become Mumbai's most celebrated cricketer!
- V.V.S Laxman would have bagged the VISA and TVS Victor Commercials leading to instantaneous shock amongst millions of TV viewers.
- Ganguly's success rate might have been totally different due to successful opening partnerships with Aakash Chopra and Shiv Sunder Das!
- Rahul Dravid would have had a tough time in striking dependable partnerships with Yuvraj Singh and Mohammad Kaif!!
- Mukesh Ambani would have bought the Kolkatta Knight Riders and Mumbai Indians would have been purchased by Shah Rukh Khan since Ajit Agarkar is the Icon Player!
- The World would have no special respect for the logo and the MRF Blimp (which is hovering around the skies hopelessly this IPL) would have been blasted to the Earth's Stratosphere.
- The Australian Cricketers will probably have no respect for the Indian Team.
- Shane Warne would have set his base in Mumbai to target Bollywood Heroines.
- Saeed Anwar would have always boasted about thumping 194 runs against India in Chennai!!Also Chales Coventry would have been the next chairman of ICC!
- Not that they need more arrogance but the Aussies would have felt proud that Ricky Ponting became the highest scorer in Test Cricket!
- Indian Cricket team might have been under public attack after two embarrassing defeats against Holland and Zimbabwe in the 2003 World Cup which caused their elimination!
- Airtel would have had Joginder Sharma as their brand ambassador!
- India would have never experienced anguish in the 13 run loss in the Chennai Test against Pakistan or the Hyderabad ODI defeat against Australia chasing 351! ( because they would have never really had the chance to sniff victory if it werent for Mr. You know who! )
I could go on and on.....but these thoughts begin to scare me!! Sachin Tendulkar will be turning 37 within 10 days. No doubt that he is in the form of a lifetime and is scoring runs in all formats of the game!! Eventually there is going to be a day when the Maestro retires from the format.
That day, a part of me will perish and and many people around the world would ambivalently salute the Genius and lament over the Loss for International Cricket!
Till then, Ladies and Gentlemen, I kindly ask you all to sit back and enjoy the Legendary Show 'SACHIN RAMESH TENDULKAR" , for this Spectacular movie will not be running in the theaters forever!!
LOVE you SRT!! Will worship your contribution to Cricket forever!!
