Well this list is my own personal one. If you have anything against this, kindly go stuff yourself.
The cricketers I have seen not a large one thanks to no Cable TV at home and CAS after I got Cable TV at home.
1) Sachin Tendulkar:
This man has been my hero from the day I started watching cricket. He was, is and will always be the greatest player in the world for me. I still remember crying as India folded in the 1996 World Cup Semifinals. I had thought India cannot be defeated because it had Sachin and couldn't understand how this had happened.
What should I speak about this guy. His records? Everyone knows that. His humility, the world speaks about. His greatness? Well I acknowledged that in 1996 so there is nothing left to debate there. So, let me talk about my passion for him.
He is the sole reason I started watching cricket and am continuing to do so. Everytime he gets to bat I am tensed about his performance as if I am sitting for an examination, and as the shots start flowing I go into trance watching the master at work. His cover drive. Ooh! His straight drive. Aah! His elegance. Oh my God! His innovativeness. Oh my! Divinity in Motion. A professor of mine once spoke about mental masturbation. Maybe he was referring to Sachin batting.
His passion for India. His unsatiable desire for excellence, his incorruptible nature, everything about him is ideal. He is a living Superman sans the cape and a jetti over the pant. An image that will never go out of my mind is him shaking hands with all the groundmen and women after winning the epic match against England at Chennai.
No sportsperson in the world can claim to have the love, affection and goodwill of as many people as Sachin. I am lucky I was born in the Sachin era but I still feel sad that I missed the first 7 years of his epic journey towards immortality. May his legend grow forever.
