Why Sachin is God

Andy [in letter to Red]: Remember Red, hope is a good thing, maybe the best of things, and no good thing ever dies.

-From the movie Shawshank Redemption

Last week, when I went through the newspaper that Sachin has scored a half century in the All Star T20 tournament which took place in USA, I couldn’t help myself from watching it. I managed to browse and watch a 3 minute video of his fifty. It would be unfair to pick a few adjectives to describe the shots which he played. Throughout his career this man has exhausted all the positive adjectives in the dictionary. When I closed my browser my mind was flooded with memories of the ‘Little Master’.

I am a rationalist who does not believe in the concept of God. But when Sachin was first adored as the ‘God of Cricket’, my rationality accepted it without any objection. Years later, analyzing reality I believe the phrase will stand the test of reason in the years to come. I remember a conversation with my friend on God. I asked him,

“You believe in God. So do you pray every day”

“Of course, I do. Is that even a question?”

“You are rational. What makes your God stand the test of reason?”

“Well, there are a few things which reason can’t give. We live a very uncertain life. Prayers give me hope.”

Sachin made his debut for India in the year 1989. The last decade of the 20^th century is very important to India. It was the decade when economic liberalization started and privatization was allowed in many spheres. From 1991 to the current decade our country has seen a steady growth trajectory. More people moved from below poverty line to the middle class. The foundation laid in the 90s decade led to the telecom and IT revolution in the first decade of the 21^st century.

During this important phase the nation lacked something. In a span of ten years we had six Prime Ministers. The trust in the political system was at its lowest ebb and we were in need of heroes who can give us hope. For a country divided my so many factors like religion, caste, language and ethnicity it would be fair to say that following the Indian Army and a national disaster no other force unites the whole nation other than cricket.

  

(Sachin Tendulkar - Photo courtesy: Vikas D Nambiar)

In that decade the nation saw the rise of a short young man who would go on to give millions of people which they desperately needed – hope. Sachin made Indians believe that it was possible to win. His game has been adored by technical experts as the finest they have ever seen since Don Bradman have played. He made cricket look so simple. The expectations on the Little Master knew no boundaries. Every time he went out to bat he knew that the whole nation was watching.

He has carried the responsibility of satisfying the hope of millions of Indians. But the path to greatness had its pitfalls. Throughout his career the man was plagued by injuries. And injuries did affect his performance. His career reached its trough during the year 2005 where there was severe criticism calling for his retirement. The Indian supporters are the most boisterous but they are also inconsistent in supporting their stars when they are under performing.

But the man did not give up. What would follow from then was perhaps better than what used to be. He created records one after the other and when the man retired finally in the November of 2013, he has amassed so many records and numbers which others could only dream of creating. But what makes him God is not the numbers. Television sets were turned off when Sachin lost his wicket in the 90s. During the world cup final of 2011 when Sachin was caught behind, the same act was repeated. No other action is necessary to prove the impact which Sachin has got on the Nation’s psyche.

Yet it cannot be denied that he did fail to perform in many crunch matches. For a man who has the highest number of runs, he has scored only 22 in two world cup finals. But this is not to take away the greatness of the Little Master. Failures are unavoidable in every walk of life and the greatest are of no exception. I asked one more question to my friend that day.

“Does your God answer all of your prayers?”

“No. It would be blatant lie if I tell you that he does. Nevertheless, when he doesn’t answer my prayers I see it as God’s will. All I wanted was hope and belief”.

I am not a cricketing expert to say whether Bradman or Vivian Richards were better cricketers than Sachin Tendulkar. But I do know that the expectations which this man carried on his shoulders was, is and will be unrivalled by any cricketer who plays the game.

I still don’t believe in the concept of God, but the title ‘Sachin –the God of Cricket’ does stand the test of my rationality.

Photo courtersy:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/vighi/2142971632/