The Little Master is here to stay for long

Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar is back to doing what he does best, play aggressive cricket and demoralising the opposition bowlers, something which he has been doing for almost 18 years now with great success. The intensity with which he approaches cricket is something out of this world. After all these years people expect the intensity level to drop but not for this man, he still has the intensity of a 20 year old kid.

Most of us have grown up idolizing this little master (as he is popularly called in the cricketing world) and I was no different.I just love the way he bats and specially when he is in a attacking frame of mind.I like the flick of the legs shot the most and also his trademark straight drives(who can forget that).He is no doubt at his best when he is trying to take the attack to the bowlers.Its a bowler’s nightmare to be pitted against him when he is at his aggressive best.The other noticeable thing with him is he targets bowlers who tell before a series begins that they are after his wicket.He s specially targeted such bowlers and shown them whose the master.The famous battle with caddick and shoaib akhtar come to mind which happened during the 2003 world up. He absolutely took them to the cleaners, smashing the ball to all corners of the ground and sometimes even out of the ground.

Today he has cracked the 16000 run barrier in ODI s with the next best a distant 12000 odd. This itself is a testiment to his capabilities and he is no doubt the best one day player ever to walk on this planet. Also with more than 80 centuries together in both forms of the game he is surely a living legend.

The year 2006 was not a good one for him as he was plagued by injuries which is when talks of his retirement were heavy in the media. He came back from the injuries with a bang and has silenced his critics for now. Its not easy in a nation like ours to fulfill the expectations of the people. One day they hail you and treat you like god but the same crowd might turn around and burn effigies and shout slogans against you. The expectations of a billion people are upon his shoulders every time he steps on to the field but seldom has he wilted under it. He s handled it better than anyone.

Whats even more special is his smile which is pleasing for anyone to watch. His humility is the most striking thing and he is an easy going guy for whom fame has not gone into his head.He has single handedly won India many games and lead the batting for so many years day in and day out.He is no doubt one of the most charming players the game has ever seen.Hats off to the little master.I hope and believe that he has a lot more to give to the game and he will prolong his career for as long as possible and keep giving nightmares to the bowlers all around the world.