A Generation Retired- Sachin

There have been so many companies in which I am not getting shortlisted because of my marks in Boards but I have never regretted  not studying because all those while I was doing something more valuable ,which at that moment was more important, cheering Sachin in 2003 World Cup and those are the memories of a lifetime .  The sheer magic of watching him LIVE has not been a privilege, But a necessity .  The generation of Late 80’s and early 90’s are so obsessed with Change that had there been a way to present that in a Formula , Sachin had been the only ‘ Constant’ in between other  ‘variables ‘ and so when He says the dreaded ‘R’ letter word –  It isn’t sumthing one can digest easily. Saurav, Lakshman, Rahul and Anil were also pillars of Indian Cricket but he was more….He was the foundation-  If 83 world cup brought fans to the stadium , Sachin ensured that they remain glued through the magic of the wonder kid . In a country whose National game was Hockey , It was Sachin who ensured that Cricket came from Page 17 of News paper to the Front Page. And while India got Liberalized ,Match Fixing left a scar , Player came and went – He stood the test of time .

With age the reflexes turned slow , The hand eye co-ordination subdued and from a flamboyant Kid he became the precise artist. Against Australia , he made a double hundred without  hitting a single ball in Off side .  Just like a veteran painter He looks at the canvass and knew exactly which brushes to use .  It never mattered how many runs he scored . His presence at the other end  ensured to Rainas, Kohlis and Yuvrajs that the Bheeshm Pitamah is watching there batting from the other end in itself is a luxury . But after all He was mortal – Those balls which bowled him in the last series were not  merely good balls , they took the fizz out of the belief of not just himself  but also his fans . How can Monty Panesar get his wicket – The fans still remember Sharjah , Not even for a moment have us forgotten the sweep off Shane Warne , That Six of Akhtar agains Pakistan at Centurian in which he scored 98 ,The Pull shot Off Andrew Caddick in World Cup against England , The century against Kenya just a couple of days after  his father got expired, The matches he won by his bowling – That Last ball Out of Moin Khan and obviously The One Day Double Hundred against New Zealand. The fans have been part of the journey and most of their Childhood memories are of him batting . He wasn’t a player – He was one of us…As He retires , I begin to feel that my childhood is over . Just the thought that to watch Sachin bat , I would have to watch ‘Highlights’’ and not ‘LIVE’ is in itself a curse but thank God there r few formats that we may see him  for a few last time.   

I still remember how my Nani used to switch off TV once Sachin was dismissed because she knew It isn’t worth watching further. The same thought is going through my mind as I hear that the man who gave me most joy after my father has call it a day . Just Like Apple is incomplete  without Steve Jobs, Indian Hockey still misses Dhyanchand , Indian Politics still misses Indira Gandhi , Indian Cricket can never be the same without Sachin .