Top 5 quotes on Sachin Tendulkar

As long as cricket prevails in India, Indian cricket fans will always consider Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar as the ‘God of Cricket.’ It has been five years since the master has retired from the game. Still, we can hear chants of ‘Sachin, Sachin’ whenever team India or Mumbai Indians steps into the field.

Even when poor Shardul Thakur entered the field on his ODI debut with the number 10 behind his jersey, Sachin fans in the social media mercilessly thrashed Thakur. No.10 is more than a no for millions of Indians who have watched the little man play. Thakur changed his jersey number straightaway in the next series he featured. Besides that, BCCI retired Tendulkar’s No.10 jersey on November 29, 2017. Such is the legacy of the legendary Indian icon.

Over the years, we have seen an enormous amount of quotes on Sachin from his compatriots, opponents, experts, former players, current generation players, journalists. For some different reasons, I have picked five quotes among them. Here, they are:

#5 Shane Warne

Shane Warne shared a healthy rivalry with Sachin Tendulkar

" I’ll be going to bed having nightmares of Sachin just running down the wicket and belting me back over the head for six. He was unstoppable" - Shane Warne, former Australian spinner

Not too long ago, experts considered wrist spin as a dying art in the limited over formats. However, the recently released ICC T20I bowler ranking tells a different story. 5 out of the top 6 bowlers are wrist spinners. This ranking shows the current trend of teams heavily preferring wrist spinners to finger spinners.

However, all these leg spinners of the current generation (Rashid Khan, Yuzvendra Chahal, Kuldeep Yadav, Imran Tahir, etc.,) will unanimously accept the fact that Shane Warne will always remain as the ‘King of wrist spin.’ Such is the greatness of the Aussie legend. What separates Shane Warne from the rest is the amount of spin & drift that he imparts on the ball.

Now the above quote from the spin wizard arises two questions: Is Sachin the best player of leg spin of all time? Are the batsmen of current generation technically weak against wrist spin with lack of feet movement?

#4 Harsha Bhogle

Harsha Bhogle is one among the great admirer of Sachin

"If Sachin bats well, India sleeps well.” - Harsha Bhogle, renowned Indian cricket commentator and journalist

Harsha Bhogle has thrown several witty quotes about Sachin over the years. However, this particular quote will undoubtedly be his best as it quickly sums up the condition of Indian cricket team from the middle of the 1990s to the early part of 2000s. There was a norm during those days that people will switch off their TV sets once Sachin got out cheaply. Even in the ‘M.S. Dhoni: The Untold Story’ movie, we can see Sushant Singh Rajput (Dhoni) walking off from TV once team India lost Sachin for cheaply in the 2003 World Cup Final against Australia.

#3 Mark Taylor

Mark Taylor was massively impressed by Sachin's knock in the 2nd innings of Chennai test during the 1997/98 series

“We did not lose to a team called India. We lost to a man called Sachin” - Mark Taylor, former Aussie skipper

When Virat Kohli fought a lone battle for Royal Challengers Bangalore against Mumbai Indians, strong opinions were floating around that Kohli should move away from RCB. This game was not the first time Kohli had seen his team flounder a run chase. Irrespective of defending a substantial total or chasing a mediocre score, RCB is destined to lose all the time.

This heartbreak can be new for Virat fans but not for Sachin fans. Sachin was the pillar of the Indian cricket team during the middle of the 90s to the early part of 2000s. In the majority of the Indian victories during that period, Sachin had played a vital role. Except for mighty Australia, all teams including Zimbabwe were evenly matched during that period.

Australian cricket team was rolling out their opponents for fun in that era as they even won three consecutive World Cups. This particular quote from the ex-Aussie skipper ‘Mark Taylor’ who played in that era can give us an idea of how Sachin was standing in the line between victory and defeat of Indian cricket team. Virat Kohli can take a leaf from Sachin’s book on how to win games for RCB single-handedly.

#2 John Woodcock

John Woodcock (R) had covered more than 400 tests

“Gentlemen, he is the best batsman I have seen in my life. And unlike most of you, I have seen Bradman bat.” - John Woodcock, English journalist

This quote pretty much answers the debate of who is the best batsman of all time. It is true that Sir Don Bradman played on uncovered pitches with no proper protective equipment throughout his career. Yes, he has the batting average of 99.94. However, he played only in two countries - England and Australia. There were no dominant skillful bowlers in that period who can push the Don beyond his limits.

Everyone has an opinion, and no one has the right to force others to accept their view. Therefore, some will agree with Woodcock’s opinion and some will not as they will always stick with the number 99.94.

#1 Ramesh Tendulkar

Sachin was very close to his father, Ramesh Tendulkar

"I'm proud of all my children. But, of course, I'm proud of Sachin. So, no doubt he is an excellent person but something more than that I find. That's why every person feels that he is their family member which is a great thing of pride for me." - Ramesh Tendulkar, Sachin's father

This quote sums up the career of the master. Cricket is not the only reason for Sachin’s massive fan following. His off-field persona too played a huge part. In short, he is the one we all wanted to be.