Yet another Sachin Tendulkar tribute

The world is probably being ravaged by a slew of Sachin Tendulkar tribute posts, and I would not blame you if you already are sick and tired of it all. The following words are certainly going to disappear and get lost amongst the thousands of sentiments put forth by a billion or so people around the world, all directed at the Little Master. Yet I find myself sitting here, trying to express my grief in text. And I do this for the same reason the billion others are putting their heads down and writing their very own, forgive my use of this term, eulogies.

Sachin Tendulkar was not just another player on the cricket field; he was a part of our homes, an integral constituent of our everyday life. When one loses such an entity, the sheer volume of the gap felt in the heart forces you to express yourself to the best of your abilities. The fact that there are countless number of articles expressing the same only tells you how important a figure Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar was in our lives.

There’s a certain buzz that goes around a cricket field, one which charges an individual’s senses and, like current, passes on to everybody in proximity and hollers the words ‘Sachin’ repeatedly while watching him walk out to bat. That isn’t the voice of a thousand fanatic fans climbing over each other to watch their hero, nor is it a chaotic assembly of over-excited lunatics; it is the voice of India, unified, strong and loud, sticking together and throwing themselves behind one individual. You could raise a finger against our politicians and filmstars, but nobody can dare touch the sheen that is Sachin Tendulkar.

‘IS’ Sachin Tendulkar. Getting used to saying ‘was’ now will take a while. For most reading this article, while you were being changed by your mother, Tendulkar was enthralling the world with his prodigious talent at the soft age of 16. He has had 23 years of consistent running amok across the world, destroying bowling attacks, and submitting captains on to their knees. Sachin wasn’t just another legend, he was a myth troubling every bowler until they came face-to-face with the man. At 5 foot 5 inches, Sachin sent shivers down longer spines and even starred in nightmares of certain renowned bowlers.

But let’s attempt the impossible and strip the cricket away from the cricketer. Tendulkar’s prowess wouldn’t be as appreciated if it wasn’t for his social behavior. In a generation where idols are difficult to imagine, and those successfully being smothered by their fame and money, Sachin Tendulkar was a temple of idealness. Children wanted to become scientists, but cited him as their inspiration. Tendulkar created reverberations across all fields and marked his stamp in the influenced eyes of the youth.

People clamored to get a glimpse of the star, performed aartis in his name, named children after him; we revered him to such an extent, that we even convinced ourselves that he was God. If there was anything that couldn’t be done, Sachin was there to deal with it. Every failure was a hammer to the heart and a knife through our belief. We rose him to a pedestal even the most proud of stars wouldn’t want to reach, but Sachin fearlessly carried the weight of a country on his shoulders and toiled on for 23 long years.

Tendulkar was certainly a gifted batsman, but nowhere close to being God. Sachin Tendulkar was as human, as human can be. But that is where his true genius lies, that is where the impact of his doings falls hardest. Sachin Tendulkar was not different from you and me, but he gave us belief that everybody could achieve something great, could stretch past these so-called ‘limits’, and could be something extraordinary, could be a God. There is a God in all of us, and he proved that. And that’s why Sachin Tendulkar is Sachin Tendulkar.

As I mentioned earlier, these are just another 700 words added to the ten million printed all over, but these 700, as for the other ten million, all have come straight from the hearts of the legions of followers who dreaded this day, but have accepted it with a smile for what they have experienced.

Thank you, Sachin Tendulkar. Here’s to thrashing the Aussies one last time.