Six reasons why Sachin Tendulkar is more than just a great cricketer
His efforts didn’t go unnoticed. In pic: Tendulkar recieving Bharat Ratna award from Pranab Mukherjee“Beneath the helmet, under that unruly curly hair, inside the cranium, there is something we don't know, something beyond scientific measure. Something that allows him to soar, to roam a territory of sport that, forget us, even those who are gifted enough to play alongside him cannot even fathom. When he goes out to bat, people switch on their TV sets and switch off their lives."-British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC).Sachin Tendulkar’s contribution to Indian Cricket has been inexplicable. Be it being India’s leading run scorer helping the team win the most coveted prize in cricket, the World Cup in 2011; his performance against Australia on numerous occasions in Border-Gavaskar Trophy, his scores in 2008 CB Series finals, his famous desert storm innings in Sharjah; giving stiff competition to the then World Champions, or his contribution in helping India perch the top of World Rankings in Tests, glorified Indian Cricket.My previous article, titled 5 reasons why Tendulkar is better than what his stats suggest was about how stats, regardless of how good they are, are not a complete measure of Tendulkar’s illustrious career. But his immense contribution both to cricket isn’t just confined to his statistical on-field exploits, it is much more than that.Here are a few of his contributions in making cricket a richer Sport:
#1 Making Cricket the 2nd most popular sport in the world and being an inspiration
"On a train from Shimla to Delhi, there was a halt in one of the stations. The train stopped by for few minutes as usual. Sachin was nearing century, batting on 98. The passengers, railway officials, everyone on the train waited for Sachin to complete the century. This Genius can stop time in India!"
-Peter Rebouck, Australian journalist.
One must admit that without the huge Indian fan following, cricket wouldn’t be as big as it is now. Cricket wouldn’t be the world’s second most popular sport hadn’t it been for the huge Indian population.
Tendulkar’s exploits at a young age earned him accolades not just from the critics, but soon helped him become fan favorite as well. There was truly a time when half of India would switch off their television sets once Tendulkar lost his wicket.
With cricket becoming India’s favourite sport, budding cricketers were now open about pursuing a career in the sport. His name was often used to sell cricket to the crowd. It is true that at times he as a player became a larger attraction than the sport itself, his flambouyant batting was always crowd puller. Indeed he was an inspiration to many, even to legends like Rahul Dravid and MS Dhoni, who were quoted saying that Tendulkar was an inspiration.
Tendulkar didn’t just contribute to the cause of Indian cricket, but he gave the Indian crowd something to cheer about. His success brought a smile on the faces of many, and his failure made them frown.