Headlines like 'Endulkar' hurt me deeply: Sachin Tendulkar

Sachin Tendulkar

Reflecting on India’s forgettable 2007 50-over World Cup campaign, where the team made an early exit following a shock defeat to Bangladesh in the first round, Sachin Tendulkar said that the question marks that were raised over his commitment following the marquee event even led to him contemplating retirement from cricket.

In his autobiography ‘Playing it My Way’, Tendulkar writes, "After we returned to India, the media followed me back home and it hurt when I heard my own people doubting the commitment of the players.

“The media had every right to criticise us for failing, but to say we were not focused on the job was not fair. We had failed to fulfil the expectations of the fans, but that did not mean we should be labelled traitors. At times, the reaction was surprisingly hostile and some of the players were worried about their safety."

Retirement did cross my mind

Admitting that seeing media headlines like “Endulkar” – after his no-show in the tournament – was a hard pill to swallow, he said: "Headlines like 'Endulkar' hurt deeply. After 18 years in international cricket, it was tough to see things come to this and retirement crossed my mind.

“My family and friends like Sanjay Nayak did all they could to cheer me up and after a week I decided to do something about it. I started to do some running, to try to sweat the World Cup out of my head."