Sachin – This Was Not Your “Swan Song”

I am one of the three or four Indians who does not follow cricket. I was born without the “S-Gene” – the Sporting Gene for the uninitiated. In India, not only does such an admission attract derisive laughter but also occasionally gets me a huge round of sympathy from friends, strangers and colleagues. That is the kind of sympathy that wine connoisseurs reserve for the teetotalers.A billion people have dropped everything to watch Sachin’s “swan song”.  The phrase refers to an ancient belief that swans sing a beautiful song in the moment just before death, having been mute during most of their lifetime.Yesterday’s match was not Sachin’s swan song. He has not been mute by any stretch of imagination. Over 24 years and 200 tests, he has remained a run machine and deserves to be called “the best” the game has seen.He has had the kind of longevity that sports people rarely enjoy. A cricketer rarely gets to play two hundred test matches and score as many runs as Sachin has. Over almost a quarter century he has generated the kind of hysteria and irrational love that very few people have achieved with such a spotless reputation. He has kept his nose clean and retained the boyish charm that makes a nation unable to think rationally when it comes to evaluating his legacy. He has tattooed his first name into so many hearts that if anyone says, “I met Sachin …” we all assume the last name of the person to be Tendulkar.We are forever quick to declare ourselves as “the world’s best” in whatever we start to do. The neighborhood singer is quick to be declared as the next sensation. A slightly above average performer is often quick to be declared as a prodigy, which is probably the greatest disservice we could do to the person.Sachin stands for dogged perseverance and humility. He has had a craftsman’s mindset – polishing his game every day even he is not playing a match. To get back in shape despite injuries and lost form is hard for someone who remains under the microscope even when he does not do anything.He appeals to the head and the heart – a rare ability. The run machine appeals to the head of even the greatest skeptic. When he advises his fans to “be an extraordinary follower of the 'game' you choose to play”, he touches the hearts of the nation.He is never shy of declaring his love for India and the sense of responsibility he knows he carries, because he embodies the hopes of so many people who experience success vicariously. Maybe that is why there was such an emotional response to his last match. We will all need to find new heroes and find someone else to carry on the legacy. Who will give the faceless person, a reason to feel proud?http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1dkg0dw4tY0 Sachin will. Just watch him deconstruct the game and coach the starry eyed youngsters and you will know that his next job is cut out for him. He has to be a coach to a nation that desperately needs success stories in sports, not just in cricket. We need to learn not just the techniques of wielding the bat like Sachin, but more importantly to learn to give a hundred percent to the game every day. More than anything he needs to teach people how to stay humble and grounded despite success. If you think handling failure is hard, try success.Do you think Sachin will be as great a coach?-------------Join me on twitter @AbhijitBhaduri