Chappell said Tendulkar had been a shadow of his former self in the lastthree or four years and has looked like a player trying to "eke out acareer".
In his column for Mid-Day, Chappell said now that India was knockedout of the World Cup, one of the major decisions would be about Tendulkar's fateand he suggested the the batting icon to hang up his boots.
"At the moment he looks like a player trying to eke out a career; buildon a glittering array of statistics.
"If he really is playing for that reason and not to help win as manymatches as he can for India then he is wasting his time and should retireimmediately," Chappell wrote.
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Before anybody else determined his future, Tendulkar himself should decidewhat he was trying to achieve, he said.
Chappell drew a comparison with Brian Lara, who is almost four-years seniorto the Indian, and felt both were "worlds apart" in effectiveness.
"Lara's quick-footed tip toe through a terrific innings against a goodAustralian bowling attack when the rest of the West Indies top order succumbedeasily was in direct contrast to Tendulkar's stumbling effort in the crucial SriLanka match," Chappell said.
"The amazing thing about Lara's brilliant career is the fact that hehasn't changed his style at all over 17 years", Chappell said
"This is a credit to his technique and mental strength, as the ageingprocess generally makes a player more progressively conservative," heobserved.
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In contrast, Tendulkar had been a pale shadow of himself in the last three orfour years, he said.
Chappell referred to Tendulkar's double century in Sydney in 2004 and said itwas "a classic case of a great player really struggling".
"It was a tribute to his determination but it was a sad sight tosee," he wrote.
Chappell said Lara has been relatively free from injuries and the West Indiescaptain managed to retain the same approach to the game.
"Despite all the fuss and the odd controversy that has surrounded Lara'scareer, he has remained himself; this is my game and that is how I play,"Chappell said.
Chappell felt Tendulkar could not maintain his extremely high standards forthe last few years and "unless he can find a way to recapture this mentalapproach he's not doing his team or himself any favour".
PTI
