Sachin or Laxman?

Durban, where we were bamboozled for a paltry 66 fourteen years back was conquered yesterday. And boy, it was conquered in some style. The image of an arched Jacques Kallis, helplessly trying to avoid a Sreesanth snorter would be etched in the memories of every Indian cricket fan. Fantastic stuff boys, keep up the good work.

Happens to a South African too

While Zaheer, Bhajji and Sree were exceptional with the ball, it was that man VVS again who set up the game for them. Scoring 96 sublime runs on a pitch where every other batsman was found wanting was something quite extraordinary. Well, as they say, when the going gets tough, Laxman gets going.

It was disappointing though, to notice swords being drawn on SRT (again!!) for failing when the team needed him the most. Statistics were dug up in order to prove how Laxman is a far better batsman than Tendulkar when the chips are down. Glorifying Laxman’s performances while berating Tendulkar’s was totally uncalled for. Not everybody knows the fact that out of his 50 Test hundreds, 20 have resulted in an Indian win. Not everybody knows that out of his 46 ODI hundreds, 32 have resulted in wins. I could have jotted down thousands of statistics just to prove that he has been India’s biggest match winner ever, but refrained from doing so, as it would have provided more fodder for the so called “Tendulkar critics” to dig up some more stats and figures to downplay the man’s contribution to Indian Cricket. He failed at Durban because he is a human, just like you and me. He had an off day at the office, but made sure that his end of year reviews were totally in the top bracket. Over 1500 runs with an outstanding average of 78, not everybody delivers a performance of that stature consistently over a period of 21 years.

“Oh, he failed right? Then why call him God”? Tendulkar worshipers don’t call him God just because they expect him to win every game for India with his divine presence. Like we believe in the creator of all universes, we believe in him. As long as he is at the crease, impossible seems possible, living up to the tagline of one of the brands he endorses. In the 90's, he was the one who used to give us hope when the rub of the green seemed to be going against our way. Not every 17 year old can bat for 6 hours on a seaming Old Trafford track to save a test match for India. It’s only when he departs, the panic sets in, the nervousness starts showing in the form of chewing of nails and wrinkles on the forehead. Remember the 1996 World Cup semifinal against the Lankans? Or the nail biter at Chennai against the arch rivals? Or the most recent Hyderabad hurricane against the Aussies? Impossible was made possible on countless other occasions, only to be made impossible again by the individuals who surround him.

It’s probably only under these situations that even a half century from somebody else looks more valuable than “those” 96 international tons. We expect him to hit a ton every innings, we expect him to stay on the crease till the last run is scored and we expect him to chase down 360 to win the World Cup. Isn't that a little too much? Probably, that's the benchmark the man has set, something which even Laxman and Dravid have failed to do so.We expect him to be accountable for every time he fails to deliver the goods while we forget that it’s a team game afterall. The same Laxman failed when India were battling hard to save the Centurion test, but it went down as an another innings where a Tendulkar century had failed to save India. I am just wondering, had India lost the Durban test, who would have been crucified then? 

It’s high time we appreciate what these men of steel have done for Indian Cricket, rather than baying for their blood every time they fail. Trust me, you would never have a batting line-up as strong as the one which has mesmerized crowds the world over in a long long time. Let’s savor their heroic feats before they decide to hang their boots, because I still feel, that majority of us are incapable of achieving even half of the glory these men have achieved.

P.S. Happy New Year Guys ! :)