Anyone For Tennis?

Every Indian loves cricket and in turn Sachin Tendulkar. It wouldn’t be wrong to say that Sachin is an Indian national obsession of sorts. He has driven the nation to ecstasy and agony, got them to laugh and cry, celebrate and mourn. There are many reasons for this, the main one being that not only is he the best at what he does and has been so for well over two decades, but also for the way he carries himself off the pitch and represents our nation in forums across the world.

All of 1.2-plus billion Indians crave to meet with Sachin in some capacity. For some he is their ultimate hero and icon and for others he is the saviour who has helped them smile every time he has stepped on to the cricket field. He has been deified in India and in the ever-growing Indian diaspora and it is understandable why.

Speaking for myself, I have been one of the few fortunate ones who have had the privilege of interacting with him multiple times in the course of our careers spanning the last two decades. To start off, I have played tennis with Sachin, and he has a mean forehand! I have met him multiple times at Wimbledon, where he comes to watch in particular Roger Federer play. In fact, he has been a feature of the Wimbledon Royal Box for the past few years and we have started to expect him at the Big W.

I have sat with him in many business meetings and all through these interactions my adulation for the little master has only grown. He is perceptive and intelligent, eager and enterprising and finally attentive and keen to learn. He doesn’t say much about things he doesn’t know and is more than happy to listen and absorb.

What makes Sachin extra special is the level of pressure he has played with for over two decades. It is inhuman on occasions and as a high-performance sportsperson I have often wondered how he has been able to perform with such consistency day in and day out for the period he has.

In fact, for the expectation he carries every time he walks on to the field and for the demi-god status ascribed to him off it, Sachin is clearly in a league of his own. I can safely say that the only other superstar I have interacted with who is as humble as Sachin is Roger and that should sum it up in a nutshell. Here I am talking about the two greatest sports icons of our generation, men who have turned themselves immortal by the sheer scale of their achievements. And despite the magnitude of their achievements, they remain humble and modest, a real lesson for every aspiring sportsperson from across the world.

As Sachin reaches the home stretch of his career, no one wishes it more than me that he finishes with a bang. For performers, it is the most difficult of calls to give it all up one day, for sport has occupied the centrestage of our lives for the greater part of our existence. To think of the period post-retirement causes a strange sensation and that’s when you realise what life will be without the passion that has nurtured you for 25 long years. That is also what propels you to try and finish off on a real high, to leave your final imprint on the sport you love so much. In Sachin’s case, after giving us all so much to cherish for over 24 years, he deserves nothing less.