Little Master, big feat

A HUSH goes around the ground whenever the second Indian wicket falls in a home Test match. It is not a mark of disrespect towards the departing batsman but a sign of the excitement felt about the imminent emergence of his replacement.

As Sachin Tendulkar steps onto the field, a roar erupts that could shake trees, and does not abate till he has taken guard. Another deathly quiet falls over the ground when Tendulkar is removed cheaply. Shock came over the faces of spectators when he lost his wicket in Bangalore. India rides a tide of emotion every time its chosen one enters the arena. A power has been put in Tendulkar's hands that could easily be misused.

But it has not been all idolatry. Tendulkar's mistake in the second innings provoked fury among locals convinced he has failed too often at critical moments. Never mind that he had almost saved the match. Critics point towards a flaw in his temperament, an inability to rise to the occasion. They yearn for a Viv Richards to strut his stuff in the glorious hour, or a Brian Lara to take a match by the scruff of its neck. One ancient scribe speaks of "the myth of Tendulkar". Perhaps he has lacked the strength to impose himself at telling times. But a man must be taken as a whole.

Ever since he first appeared as a precocious tousle-haired teenager, Tendulkar has known nothing except exorbitant expectations. It is no small thing to become public property at 16. Nor has there been any hiding place. Not for sportsman the luxury of private studios. Every time he leaves his home it is an appearance; he loves swanky cars but can drive only in the dead of night. It is against this background that his career must be judged. It is not an achievement. It is a miracle.

Remarkably, Tendulkar has managed to retain his health and reputation through it all. His body might be complaining but his spirit endures and he seems immune to stress and sickness. During the course of his tumultuous career, Don Bradman suffered several serious setbacks. Tendulkar has even retained a semblance of normality in his life, a wife, children who tease him and egg him on, friends, a restaurant, the same smile. Although their records are almost as impressive, Rahul Dravid or Virender Sehwag do not attract as much attention.

Throughout, there has been something in Tendulkar that sets him apart. No matter how much he has immersed himself in the comfort of the team, he has been treated as a special case. Partly it is the purity of his style. From the outset, as another child practising as dawn broke over Shivaji Park, he could bat in the classical way. Coaches and contemporaries insist that he was not taught the game; it came from within, like an underground spring.