Sachin Tendulkar’s dream run for his elusive 100th international century once again ended in failure as he departed just six runs short during the the third Test between India and West Indies in Mumbai on Wankhede Stadium which was rumoured to be tailor made for a date with the history.
Wankhede Stadium was packed with expectant crowd and the stage seemed perfectly set for Tendulkar to reach the unprecedented feat in his home city. News channels, Brands, Leaders, MCA, Sports-persons and everyone connected or non connected to the game had prepared well in advance to celebrate this national success. Gift galore was waiting for the ‘D’ moment. But Alas and alack everything that is planned the way it should go doesn’t always go the same way. Today was no different. God’s adoring fans went morgue like stunned silent when, after racing to 94, he edged Ravi Rampaul to Darren Sammy at second slip. There was a pindrop silence and nobody could believe what their eyes had seen. Twitterspace went berserk with ”oh no, not again” tweets. The trending topic of the day was Sachin missing his 100th ton and nothing else. The fear of follow-on was nothing compared to Sachin not reaching his landmark.
Yes, we all know that it has been 11 matches (Tests and ODIs) since Sachin Tendulkar has scored a century and he might be facing nervous 90′s syndrome for this final century. The expectations around the great man getting to the landmark are huge and every failure to get there – even if his innings was a good one – comes with its share of criticism from everybody and anybody. People forget his contributions to the game and start talking like ‘Sachin should retire now’, ‘Sachin isn’t a match winner’ and ‘He’s selfish, he plays only for his records’. No one cares about the match winning innings he plays. Everyone seems to be waiting with bated breath for Sachin’s hundred so much that they forgot how important it is playing for a nation than playing for records. We are a country obsessed with records and statistics – it’s a hundred and no less that is expected from Sachin every time he comes with a bat. A stellar batting effort when it’s most required, would hold absolutely no value in relation to a scratchy 100 on a belter of a track.
I think it’s time that we recondition ourselves to take 100th hundred as just another milestone, not one that merits so much hype. Understandably, not just India but the whole cricket playing world is crazy about Sachin Tendulkar and his great achievements, the milestone is a dream come true – 100 is a magical number in cricket, one that is a distant dreams for most of the players to dream forget achieving it. However, we need to think hard if this milestone is really so important for a man to achieve who is considered to be God in Cricket. Sachin still has the highest number of hundreds, runs and matches to his name. We don’t really need the hundredth hundred to tell us how great Sachin is, do we?
India’s top priority right now in Tests should be to perform well in Australia and get back the No. 1 ranking so that all of us can forget the debacle at England. India’s winning streak is far more important than Sachin’s ton.
Sachin is now considered a public property and everyone thinks they have a full right to scrutinize his life and career. The so called critics wait for every opportunity to pounce on him and pass their verdict on how Sachin is no more fit to play and should retire. These have hardly affected the man, but perhaps for the first time he looks vulnerable. Having averaged a brilliant 78+ in Tests last year, Sachin’s average has dropped to the forties since his last century.
Also, we are so obsessed with Sachin’s 100th ton that we just turn a blind eye towards other great players contributions and achievements. Why Dravid’s consistent performance is never talked about? Why Ashwin’s all round performance didn’t get it’s fair share? We should not forget that cricket is a team game and we should not single out a person for our praises and criticism.
It’s time we become SPORTS LOVING NATION and not just STATS LOVING NATION. We should stop pressurising Sachin for his around-the-corner ton. The 100th ton proves nothing except his greatness which has already been said, written and discussed. Great team performance is far more important than achieving a personal goal and if Sachin helps India get there with a ton, fantastic!
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