In the air

Don't know about you but Jonty Rhodes was the finest fielder from my generation. It was because of him kids like me opted to be a fielder. Not a batsman or a bowler but a proper fielder. Although this had something to do with the fact that we were hopeless at batting or bowling is a different story. Going back to the South African, he was a role model in the '90s. Jonty caught some of the most spectacular catches you'll ever see. An indomitable figure in the gully point where he usually stood guard, he dived with a purpose unlike 21st Century footballers. An affable personality with no controversy whatsoever, he was always clapping and encouraging his teams-men. There was something about him. Most importantly, other than being a reliable middle-order batsman, he saved a hell lot of runs during his tenure. I remember watching him run all the way to the perimeter, slide and stop the ball from cross the boundary line thus saving that precious one or two runs. Time and time again. Now, do we have a figure to calculate? How many opposition runs did he stop from culminating? His record at running out batsmen with his bull's eye is a stuff of legend but what about the runs he saved? We probably don't know. Maybe greatness doesn't require statistics to prove itself. Particularly when a great is too busy doing his job.

The perfect farewell

India's favouritest son is leaving the battleground. For good. There have been several strong voices postulating that he should have retired immediately after our World Cup triumph. Well, you can't blame him. The man that he is today and the boy that he was have only one thing in common: they see themselves doing nothing else but playing cricket. He's 40 now and there is very little doubt left in anybody's mind that we'll never be able to replace him. Interestingly, his meteoric rise coincided with the economic liberation of early '90s and it's a fitting tribute to his endurance that he has had his highs and lows just like our humble Rupee did over the years. But he always made a comeback. Unlike our Rupee. Although his 100th century tested our patience like nothing else, he made sure he dictated his own exit. In style. The way he played the game. With respect. So it's OK to go overboard with his swan song. However, is it perfectly fine for the media to go overboard with Sachin's valediction? For argument's sake, let them have a field day on his past, present and future. Besides, the sort of impact this pint-sized sportsman had on our psyche is beyond quantification. I used to be a huge cricket fan during my school days and to me, Sachin was greater than God. (And this was before Mathew Hayden called Sachin God and the phrase struck.) Akin to millions of my countrypeople, i often used to watch matches only to witness his innings. I remember having this huge lump in my throat when Shoaib Akhtar castled him on his very first delivery to the maestro. I don't think i would have felt that much sadness for anybody else's failure. Moreover, he wasn't anyone else. He was Namma Sachin, to borrow my dad's words. (After so many years, that grief is being successfully being gifted by Roger Federer every other month.) As a consolation, Sachin went back to the pavilion. Head held high with a bit of disbelief—sans theatrics—touched with a tiny grin that said it all. But then, the kind of pressure he performed under was unrivaled. Try going to work assuming that your output is going to affect a billion unknown souls. He did that for nearly a quarter of a century. There are several more reasons why it's perfectly fine, even for the media, to go overboard with a farewell that we deeply feared. For a nation that not only lacks but also needs heroes, he's a rarity. To those who don't think so, find a replacement and then we'll talk. He may not be a saint so to speak (not that he claimed to be, anyway) but at least he never once tweeted during working hours. Unlike the rest of us.

Thank you, Sachya!

This is the first time I’m going to write about a sport which coincidentally is like a religion in India. If I start lampooning this “colonial” sport then this blog will not end so I’ll get to the point with no further ado. However, this sportsperson is much above the sport for me here.

History was made yesterday. I’m blogging about it today.

Sachin Tendulkar scored 200 not out against South Africa, the highest ODI score ever! There are many reasons why I find it irresistible not to overlook this feat. First of all, the last best record stood at 194 runs and not many would have bet on Sachin to surpass it. He not only did the unexpected but also came back to field in the next inning with full gusto, inspite of all the wear and tear that must have took place while batting. Secondly he did it at the ripe old age of 36. Thirdly, Sachin is a little bundle of joy for a divided country like mine where UNITY is a luxury in real meaning of word.

Lots of people dismissed Sachin for overstaying his welcome in the team and that he should retire gracefully. In fact, I was one of them, notwithstanding my lack of interest in cricket in general. But with this knockout, he cements his place not only in the team which nonetheless had no qualm whatsoever in keeping him in as he is essential as always but also in the annals of our memory for as long as we live and for generations ahead.

Yesterday, the whole of India celebrated as we all understand the fluency of Sachin’s wrist strokes, patience and the beleaguering calmness of approach in executing every shot. No language barrier for any of us, just euphoria of unleveled magnitude.

I’m pretty active on Twitter and the kind of exultation it displayed yesterday couldn’t be missed. I didn’t miss it. Like my friend Ivo from NYC tweeted yesterday, “Something just happened and all of India just had an orgasm.”

It doesn’t take much effort to understand the kind of reverence we hold for a person like Sachin. He has been unequivocally stayed non-controversial and the only time I remember him being controversial was when he uttered, “I belong to India and Mumbai belongs to all Indians…” and I stood by him like millions others on this so-called controversy.

Long Live Master Blaster…..