Page 38 - The Indian EYE 042823

SPORTS APRIL 28, 2023 | The Indian Eye 38

IPL 2023

Sachin Tendulkar still inspires Indian stars;

games get tougher in the league

OUR BUREAU
New Delhi/Chennai/Ahmedabad
achin Ramesh Tendulkar, a play-
er who redefined the standards of
Scricket to such an extent that he
was awarded the title of ‘God of Crick-
et’. In a career that lasted over 25 years,
Sachin became a role model for many
cricketers and became the benchmark
that is still out of grasp for even the best
cricketers of this generation. “Sachin
Tendulkar was my role model and in-
spiration. He was the benchmark,”
Rohit Sharma stated in the book
Sachin@50 published by Simon and
Schuster for Sachin’s 50th birthday.
Cricketers before Sachin as well
as Cricketers after Sachin knew about
the mesmerizing talent he possessed
and why he stood leagues above many
players.
“First, there was Sir Don Brad-
man, then there was Sir Garfield
Sobers. Then it was Sachin Ramesh
Tendulkar,” Sunil Gavaskar said in
Sachin@50 published by Simon and
Schuster for Sachin’s 50th birthday.
“Sachin is the best I have seen
and will perhaps ever see. Well done
my friend and a very happy birthday,”
stated Sourav Ganguly in Sachin@50
published by Simon and Schuster for Former cricketers Brian Lara and Sachin Tendulkar greet each other during the match between Sunrisers Hyderabad and Mumba in Indians at
Sachin’s 50th birthday. Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad on Tuesday (ANI)
For more than two genera-
tions of Indians, and cricket fans It was not just the runs he scored. him as KKR lost wickets in the crucial
from elsewhere, Sachin Tendulkar It was the manner in which he scored “I take responsibility for moment of the game. Rana failed to
is a name that opened doors and them - with matchless flair, scoring defeat”: Nitish Rana step up as he walked back to the pa-
hearts wherever you were on the 100 international hundreds in the vilion for a score of 4(7) as he became
planet. Even in the days before the process. olkata Knight Riders suf- the first victim of Ishant Sharma.
social media revolution, Sachin was On 24th April Sachin will be 50 fered their third consec- As KKR batters accepted their
a truly global icon. It didn’t matter years old and to mark this special oc- Kutive defeat in the Indi- fate and ended up putting a low score
if you were in Sydney or South Af- casion a book Sachin@50 will be re- an Premier League (IPL) 2023 of 127 in 20 overs on the board, KKR
rica, Kolkata or Kingston, Sachin’s leased to make it even more special. against Delhi Capitals on Thurs- bowlers played a pivotal role in bring-
name was a conversation starter. It includes original essays and pieces day, and KKR skipper Nitish Rana ing the visitors back into the game.
The teenage wonder who ex- took the responsibility for this loss.
“Credit to the bowlers though,
ploded into the global consciousness by his wife Anjali Tendulkar and his Nitish has displayed his potential I think the upcoming games will be
mentor-cum-brother Ajit Tendulkar;
with his bloodied nose in Pakistan in cricketers such as Sunil Gavaskar, as a batter in the past few games. He good for us. We were just trying to de-
1989, before becoming the greatest Sourav Ganguly, Rohit Sharma, Har- scored 75 (41) against Sunrisers Hy- lay, but they played really well in the
batting sensation ever, transcended bhajan Singh, David Warner, Michael derabad, however, his knock was not powerplay. That’s where they won the
the boundaries of sport. As with Jes- Clarke; and other stalwarts like Abhi- enough to take KKR across the finish game. We need to play well as a team.
se Owens, Ali, Pele and Maradona, nav Bindra, Pullela Gopichand, Vish- line. “I take the responsibility for this, We need to bowl like the way we did
Sachin’s role in making Indian crick- wanathan Anand, Sania Mirza, Usha I should have stood there,” Nitish today, if we manage to sort these
et a household phenomenon globally Uthup, Farhan Akhtar, Prahlad Kak- Rana said after the match. things out, we can fight better,” Nitish
can never be underestimated. Against DC all eyes were stuck on
kar, among others. Continued on next page... >>

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