'A Giant In His Own Right'

Tendulkar is my favourite overseas player. Forpatriotic reasons, Brian Lara is the best Caribbean represents for me. They aredifferent people and none the less because of the different cultures they comefrom. Lara, because he is a left-hander is flashy and elegant. There is acertain panache about his batting, his bat comes down on the ball with a highback lift.

Tendulkar stands still at the crease but loves toattack and is very positive. He could have scored more runs but then he is noGeoff Boycott. As a person, Tendulkar has invited less controversy than Brian.On a different note, I can't help commenting that when it comes to style, I findRahul Dravid most stylish. In boxing parlance, he gets his punches withoutanyone noticing it. At the end of it, his opponent is bruised!

I didn't change my style but then Tendulkar is findinghis own challenge in a different way. It doesn't make him any less passionate.He has wonderful love for the game. I lasted up to 38 and could have gone on andtried to accomplish a few more things. Under Dennis Waight the fitness levels wehad could have matched any of today's top teams.

When I left, my mind was willing but wear and tear and ageing had begun to showup at the door. Thank God I never really was seriously injured. I kept workinghard, trying to be super fit, a healthy athlete.

I wore my heart on the sleeve and showed more emotionon the field. Tendulkar never contests a decision. But then everyone isdifferent. His affair with the game has lasted long. It can continue for atleast four more years. He must have set himself targets which he could achieve.

I have always called him Kid. I first heard of himthrough Ian Bishop. Touring Indians in England in late 80s were playing againstDerbyshire in a first class fixture and he smacked Bishop back over his head fora six. Now Bishop was definitely one of the meanest. He tried to be aggressiveto the young man and the little man dispatched him. I remember Bishop telling mewith a certain urgency in his voice: The little guy is dangerous. Now Bishopwasn't the one to praise a batsman easily. I said who he was talking about. Whydid he say so. His talk had the feeling about somebody who would become an iconin the years to come. Tendulkar, as we know, has turned out to be of some rarevalue.

I have met him a few times, with his wife and kidaround in England, shared a flight with him and his family. We have discussedcricket at times.

I remember my chat with him in Antigua. Indians weretouring the West Indies in 2002 and he was struggling for runs.

I went to the dressing room and he was very accommodating. I said to him:Sometimes negative thoughts could occupy the mind. There are times when becauseof the attacking style of ours we could do something silly, hit in the air, makea wrong judgment. We hear a lot of boo-boos from critics. But that is our style.We could have hiccups, bad times. But when on song, it is a sheer pleasure forpeople. It removes boo-boos. More often than not he would succeed. He justneeded to be resilient.

Resilient he sure has been. In Sydney he made 241 aftera poor decision he received in a previous Test. But he didn't let it get to him.It was typical of him. If you could score against Australia, against anyopposition on any surface, you are all right.

This kid has been brought up on pressure. Ever since hewas young, he shouldered responsibility. When he was captain, I always thought abig burden had been placed on somebody so young. Something we all ignore is thecommercial pressure he works under. It's a huge factor, an obstacle. There is animpossible demand on your time and attention from sponsors. There must be somuch running on the young man's mind. Tendulkar, through his passion, has shownthat cricket remains his priority.

I've always looked at him as somebody who loves thegame. That's why he is successful. He is level-headed and his interviews showit. He is well-respected, and let's speak in this way, an icon. One of thecoolest characters the game has seen. If he was to walk off the field today,without ever lifting a bat again, he would still be one of the icons, a truelegend. Let's not confuse things by comparing him with Viv or anyone else. He isa giant in his own right.

(Concluded)

PTI