Master Blaster at his best !!! what an innings !!! I was shocked to see the News where in there was a debate about who is the best Sachin/ Sir Viv richards/Sir Don Bradman...what else do u want sachin to achieve to tell the world that he is the best why people in india dont take pride in being Indian and telling the world that SACHIN RAMESH TENDULKAR is the BEST OFF ALL & will remain so !!!!!!!!

superb article...thanks for your contribution in ICF

awesome article

Awesome article on an awesome cricketer. Sachin is the greatest ever. If ever I feel down or depressed I watch a Tendulkar special and e'thing seems beautiful again. May he play this way for many more years to come.

What a wonderful innings it was. Long live sachin. Long live Cricket.

May God Bless You.

'I Will See God When I Die But Till Then I Will See Sachin'

Fabulous description of the phenomenon called SRT. For want of right words, I can simply state: for any walk of life, one can look up to him for inspiration. I do that all the time in my limited capabilities.

Bala, Man......you just stole my heart. Hats off to you for writing an article out of this world. It truly is abt the greatest person on earth. Perhaps Sachin did not grace the game, but the game wanted Sachin to grace it. And hence are the true words of Ravi Shastri...."He is from upstairs who is here to play cricket......" and I add Once he is done, he would have raised so much dust that it takes gazillion number of years to settle down.

Fantastic article, a marvellous read, more articles from Bala would be appreciated.

Awesome article , its really now getting tought to write about him :)

A superb piece and one which seemed to have emanated from the depths of the heart. Beautifully written and a fitting tribute to the greatest ever cricketer. Well done, Balachandran, and hopefully we'll get to read more of your pieces in the future.

u r my god sachin,we salute u

Beautifully written ...!!!! Glorifies the fact that cricket would be so different when Sachin Tendulkar - the GOD of cricket as we call him fondly - shall retire !!!!

Truly amazing. I am awestuck by the sheer passion Sachin has for the game having played 20 years of international cricket.This latest masterpiece from him has been belligerent and simply breathtaking.

What can be said now! An admirer can only praise Sachin, and now even the sternest critic has turned himself to be his admirer. He presents the 2 faces of the same coin, one face is the Godly cricketing achievements and his work for the poor and needy and the other face is the Human, when he fails. But we who watch him and adore him must give him some space as a Human. He is still the 16 year old. And hats off to this true Indian citizen who understands his role in the society. There can never be another Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar. All of us must realize the amount of sacrifices he has made to achieve this humanly impossible. And Sachin still remains so humble.
And probably foreseeing the future, myself and my elder son had named my second second son as Sachin 17 years ago. I am honoured by my own faith.
Ramamurthy Iyer

wonderful article, please write more.

but i think that his inning was a more personal milestone rather than for team because in his last 7 precious slog balls he just scored 5 runs while other batsman might have made 15-20 out of them.
so it was a good innings.
bt not 100percent for his team

He is a record's master

One of the best articles I've read recently. The articulation matches the maestro's achievement.

comments about Sachin is unmatched. Sachin is like a musician on the field except that the bat is a musical instrument.
Regards RAYMOND

Thanks for a wonderful article Bala.
Sachin's hunger for runs and passion for the game, dedication to the team amazes me. He's truly a super human.. I dont think its ever possible to any human on the earth to be as consistent as sachin for more than 20 years. He is getting better and better with the age. There are no signs that he's nearing to 37. He's the one factor which can unite whole INDIA irrespective of region/religion/age/gender/class etc. Proud to be a devotee of this cricket god. Salute to the master. I still wonder, how on the earth anyone will get words to criticize this man.

A lovely piece.

Wow! Quite a read. Kudos to Sachin for achieving the feat. Having said that, doesn't undermine the effort put in this piece of writing. The very fact that you have to write about Sachin makes it a difficult task. Good Job Bala. Keep it up...

As nicely put in words as deftly placed in the gaps by Sachin yesterday.Looking forward more from your cricketing pen!

Even though much has been written and will continue to be written about this man, your article was a pleasure to read.
Largely also to satiate our hunger for all things Sachin even when that man is not on the field wielding a bat.
Thanks Bala

You summed it up brilliantly man..Really nice article on the master..

" That his bat is not an extension of his body as is often said. Perhaps the opposite - His body is an extension of his bat" - Well said Sir! Its true He is born craftsman. Nostradamus is supposed to have predicted a "Man from Northwest of India and a Temple from Southwest will unite India apart caste and creed" pertaining to Mahathma and Sabarimala. Why can't that man be SRT too? Coz India is united when SACHIN is on song!

Bravo! Well done, my man! Your writing is as ephemeral as sachin's class. You really write very well. Hope the cricinfo team empanels you as one of their writers. Hope to see more of you in the future. My best wishes, Shashi.

Salute the greatest. May he continue to paint many more masterpieces on the world canvas !

Good grief! I wish people would be content with watching the man bat, and supress the urge to regurgitate superlatives all over a page. Big fan of Sachin, but after reading 'yet another' article about how great he is/how he's god/how he's superman/how he made 200 in an ODI, the flavour of an innings/achievement begins to sour. Stop gushing, please, buy a DVD of his best innings, sit in front of your TV, and watch.

EXCELLENT ARTICLE!!!! Awesome way to convey how a billion fans feel about GOD SRT.

Superb piece man! Really well-written, about a man who shows us how life should be lived!!!

What a player!

What a wonderful player!

What a Gem in Team India!

Go! Sachin! Go!

If Sachin does nothing more than turn up in the morning, he still creates a world record - for he has already played more matches than anyone else and would be adding to that number. If he lasts for one ball, another record for maximum number of balls faced in a career. If he scores but one run, another world record. If he obliges and hits a boundary, another world record for most boundaries hit in a career. If he hits a 50 or a 100, more world records - none has hit as many. Yet, he motivates himself to carry his bat through the innings (world record for doing it max no. of times), hit 25 fours in an innings(another record), hit a double century - something that's not done before - awesome! Wonder what stuff he's made of. True master of his craft; motivation for anyone who wants to do something with life - be it playing sitar, being a doctor or engineer, run an enterprise, serving with NGO, defend the borders or work for the government. No wonder, Little Master is a big idol for all.

NICE ARTICLE , BALA AND RIGHTLY SAID ABOUT THE ARTIST, NOT EVERYONE CAN DRAW A MONALISA ON THE CANVAS, SACHIN's INNINGS WAS JUST OUT OF THE WORLD, FORGET WHAT HIS DETRACTORS HAVE TO SAY, FOR EVERY INDIAN, HE IS THE GREATEST WITHOUT DOUBT.

One of the best pieces on tendulkar i've ever read...and being an ardent fan i've read hundreds. Very fitting of a momentous occasion like this for the genius..everything said is so justified yet everything seems to fall short in front of the sheer magnitude of his achievement .
Still well done , very well put in words.

Well said.

Brilliantly written. You are true, there are no words to explain his mastery. Only the master himself can say whether he has lived up to his own expectations. Long live the legend!

absolutely splendid article "that he gives of himself every time through his bat so that we may once again experience the heady breathlessness that sports brings into our lives. So that over the years we all have a bit of Sachin Tendulkar in us". i guess about a billion believe it everytime he walks to bat, as they say when he bats everything is right with india.

Yes. Cricket,like writing, is surely about possibilities. You can stretch it as much as you want or you can sink and be forgotten. Tendulkar has taken cricket where no man has been before. He richly deserves the crown.Congratulations.

Excellent attempt to admire and appreciate this peerless Sachin. I still feel that no amount encomium or epithet can even remotely qualify to fully adore this best batsman the cricketing world has ever seen or going to see. Age cannot wither Sachin nor do customs stale his infinite variety. Other players cloy the appetite they feed but he makes hungry where he most satisfies. As Mr. Sunil Gasaskar rightly said the day is not far way when Sachin scores 250 and 450 runs in ODI and Test respectively.

Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar batting is very awesome.I want sleep with him.Please arrange for opportunity.

Very good article. I think you have wonderfully summed up what Tendulkar means to India and vice-versa.

We could go on and on about the debate of who the greatest is. However, for me it has been about the pure joy of watching him bat. He has made many a day with his fireworks and that I will always cherish.

you are deserved to be the first man on the planet to reach this feat sir. we are always with if you hit 200 or you are duck out sir. We are always to back you all the time sir. We are very proud of being an Indian sir and 'we' are the real die-hard fan's of Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar sir...........
Thank you for making us proud sir..

what a mind blowing performance, he is not 36y just 16.............

Brilliant! Your point about his body being an extension of his bat is so true. I hope he achieves world cup glory which would pretty much complete all possible achievements as a cricketer! I've been speechless on a lot of occasions when I've seen him bat and yesterday was no different.

a really brilliant article.luv tendulkar best for his consistency>

An innings of immense class.A combination of yogi-like concentration,sweet stroke play,cucumber-like demeanor and Ghandi-like humility.For twenty years Sachin has out batted everyone else and broke and made records as though he is the CEO of HMV.Sachin is probably the only cricketer who despite all his glorious achievements still sees himself a student of the game.For sachin the game will always be bigger than him.I salute you O GREAT ONE.

An absolutely breathtaking article written out of sheer adoration for a man who is worthy of every ounce of it, and so much more.
Long live SRT!

Cant stop reading about Sahin again and again. Nicely written dude. Absolute beauty.

I have a request to the OXFORD dictionary : please look for new adjectives for we might have run out of them

Your short paragraph aboout the setting being incidental while art is transcendental, is inspired! Congratulations!!

Tendulkar is a genius. Everyone knows that. This was too verbose. Almost gave me a headache.

As one of the detractors of Sachin until a few months ago, I must admit that he has proved us wrong. We thought he could never recapture the glories of his youth - but we were mistaken - in many ways he is now a better player than he was then. The period we were criticising him was when he was suffering from injuries and we were too harsh to impute less than honourable motives for his continuing to play. We must now accept that he is driven by the highest of motives and the most exalted of standards - and the moment he feels he can no longer perform at that level he will voluntarily leave the stage.

Having said all that he is only human and it is that congenital flaw which makes his vulnerability all the more engaging. We must not deify him - there was a time when he was the lone star in a desultory firmament but this is no longer the case. He has the finest batting armada in Indian history to lead and sally forth against all challengers to the supremacy of his team. Well done Sachin!

He is the sportsman of this era. No one can easily touch his record other than Tendulkar himself. May be many of them can follow his styles but none would be able to create a new style to the game cricket. India is my country cricket is my religion and Sachin is my GOD.

tendulker is really a king batsman i do not think some one will break his record only himself or sehwag that was a really suffering day for s Africans

Excellent piece, Badri! Couldn't agree more. I feel like repeating what SRK told him some time back. And I think you are spoton when you say that he is, probably, the only man for whom any cricket fan will feel proud despite their loyalty.

he is amazing player i love playing like this.any youngster please watch this how to play.i am very much afraid icant able to record this innings.its absoulte master class innings from the little master its really treat to watch.

After following Sachin for 20 years yesterday seemed like something Ive been waiting for for all those 20 years. So many times it was Oh so close. The drive yesterday to get to his 200 got a tear to my eye. I was jumping for joy, yelling and screaming at the TV. I was taken back in time to a place where I was a kid and did not take my off the screen while Tendlya batted. Hats off to you Sachin, I wish and hope and strive to have a tenth of the drive and love you have for what you do.

Beautifully written - It was only in the morning riding to work was i puzzled in finding answer to a-from-nowhere-question: "Just what does Tendulkar on a cricket field mean to me?"

Balachandran surfaces those very thoughts in an eloquent way!

Thank you,
Kinshuk

To think of the day he retires from cricket itself....

I am very glad to have this chance . I am congr... sachin for him unstoppable performance.His 200 not only for record that is for reply to SA'ans.

We are very proud of you sachin..

I am very glad to have this chance . I am congr... sachin for him unstoppable performance.His 200 not only for record that is for reply to SA'ans.

We are very proud of you sachin..

"I haven`t seen GOD but today I have seen SR TENDULKAR"

Awesome article. Something worth reading. Tired of all the comparisons one with all other greats.
To me I am just happy and lucky to watch him live whether sometimes live from the stadium or most times live on a TV set.

A very well written article. Sachin definitely is the number one cricketer for the age 1990-2010. I would very sad the day he retires.

Thanks Bala for a nice read - your write-ups are always good to read. I wish you all the best.

somsuj

If God wanted to play Cricket, he will like to play like Sachin. Will he succeed? Only God knows

Excellent Article on a great cricketer and human being.
I wonder What Chappell Brothers have to say now. They had almost written him off about 3 years ago.

Sunil

What you have written about "SACHIN RAMESH TENDULKAR" about his cricket batting abilities and his passion for cricket is WONDERFULL,WONDERFULL AND NOTHING BUT WONDERFULL. In some of the comments Sachin has been compered to Vivian and Don but the records he has established I strongly belive they caannot be compered with Sachin. He is the gretest batsman in the world the cricket has produced. I belive if anyone does not belive that he is the GREATRET BATSMAN rhen he does not know the game of CRICKET.

What a great batsman! But, some fans need to refrain from making comparisons to god. Not everyone believes in god neither is it necessary to bring up god to immortalize his achievements or his skills.

Very Well written...
As you said superlatives pale for Sachin...
Sachin is beyond cricket, beyond sports, beyond generations...

Surely, he's the Bradman of our era and then some. In my humble opinion, he has surpassed the Don as the numero uno of Batsmen. Absolutely magnificient and truly deserving. He is to cricket what Tiger Woods is to Golf and what Michael Jordan was to basketball. To India, he is even is a lot more.

hats off Sachin!! ... thanks for making India proud of you..

"A successful man cannot have people simply singing praises about him. Ask his detractors. They would point out that the Roop Singh Stadium at Gwalior had short square boundaries, lightning fast outfields and an absolute marble-top of a wicket. And they would be absolutely right. But here is something they might consider. Give a top-class artist a canvas. Give him a room and give him a vista. See what he comes up with. For the art produced thereof we credit the artist himself; not the canvas for its whiteness and blankness. Not the room for the comfort it offered. Not even the vista for its having conveniently presented itself. They are all incidental. Art is transcendental. So too is Tendulkar's batting."

I have hardly read anything better.

At Last The Greatest Man in World Cricket has done it... Long Live Sachin Long Live Cricket..!

Nice Article on the Little MASTER!!!

"SRT is not only a GOD of cricket, also he is good example of Perfect human being"

What a wonderful innings played by a little master coming from a geneous world..

Thanx

OMG.. A fitting article.. like you said.. articles praising sachin are countless and one need to pull something extra ordinay to do some justice to such a craftsman.. Today I ve found someone who is far better than Harsha or Rahul Bhattacharya to do it.

Hats off to you.. after reading the article i forgot his double ton..

Sachin is truly great. with him there is no limit to perfection. Recently my doctor told me that i might be suffering from a terminal disease my first thought was that i will no longer be in Sachin"s world .That thought caused me great pain.

A great article dedicated to the GOD of cricket. I can only say that cricket won't be as good as it is with Sachin's presence. Its just like at one moment you know that you have GOD with you and next, you are told that GOD has left you.

How do we stratify his greatness. At the top you have Don Bradman, then a little lower Sobers, Richards, Ponting, Hammond, Hobbs, Miandad etc. But where does Tendulkar fit in? I would say right beside Bradman for the services rendered to the game.

A wonderfully written article thats worthy of the occasion, well done mate.

Bala, this is the first time I probably read any of your writings ( probably did not notice before); This is a gem of an article as the the Great Man himself.. I pray Sachin keeps performing and you come up with good ones like these...

Great article on a great man for the love of great sport. I was in tears towards the end of the article..Can not imagine thinking about Cricket without him...

Very nice article Bala.. Hats off to you as well for coming up with wonderful article like this.

well done sachin,
i am sure that if u play with the same flair , like last day , u will achieve many more records. Dont allow bowlers to dictate to u, and please play atleast for three more years

sachin ! you are great ! now , please get the highest score in test cricket too ! Only you and only you should be holding the world record of highest runs in the one dayers and in test match ! you and lata didi are the kohinoors of india, we indian are the luckiest to have both of you in the same era !

nice stuff
n yeah love u mr sachin RECORD tendulkar

try 400+run in test

good article and one thing ,give us more cliches or tell things other people or you yourself have already told about sachin, friend we will never get bored.sachin heroics are too great to be tied by cliches

Nation should salute the little master SRT

sachin is the god of cricket. dont worry he will reach the 400 target in test cricket. Congratulation sachin for the next record in test. i like the comments first person reached 200 in the planet. We salute sachin.

i don't know why such a fuss is made around "the don" when everyone knows the quality of bowling & fielding (not to mention the pressure) was nothing compared to what it is today. bradman refused to play in India and mostly faced the same bowlers from the few countries they played with during those days - bradman's just been propped as "the greatest" by the anglo lobby.

200 not out is not a big matter for master sachin i think 300 also possible for matter sachin because of he return back to 16 age... REAL INDIAN

200 not out is not a big matter for master sachin i think 300 also possible for matter sachin because of he return back to 16 age... REAL INDIAN

Fantastic article Bala Sachin should be awarded the highest possible government award for making cricket crazy Indians from all over the world really proud that he is an Indian. Every time he walks that field to bat the world freezes and Indians all over the world keep glued to the TV.
Thank ou Tendulker for entertaining us for the last 2 decades and congratulations on becoming the first man on this planet (deservingly) to get 200* in ODI's and that too against one of the top sides in ODI's. we worship him

It seems he is like wine. Getting better with age. Hats off on splendid effort and era.

Thanks a million Bala for a well written piece.

SACHIN CONGRULATIONS FOR SCORING MAGICAL200.ITS ONLY YOU WHO DESERVE TO HOLD THIS RECORDS.WITH SO MANY INJURIES STILL YOU ARE PLAYING SO WELL IT SHOWS HOW GREAT YOU ARE.

balachandran, we satiate our vicarious thrist for cricket through sachin.. You satiated our vicarious thirst for praising Sachin.. Simply superb. hats off.. I loved your article as much as i love sachin's batting :) your timing and placement of words of praise were perfect.. :)

It is a fatastic article,it is very difficult to write article on his greatness.He deserve to be at top.

exellent player.he is god of cricket.

East or west, North or South Sachin is THE BEST

Fantastic article. If there can be an Cricket idol for anybody who knows a bit about Cricket, that can undoubbedly be only Sachin Tendulkar. What a humble personality he is. I used to feel proud to be an Indian for the culture that we have inherited. Today I feel proud to be Indian, since Sachin is and Inian as well. Keep going Sachin, there are more to achieve in Cricket.. How about a 500 runs from 350 balls in Test Cricket? Oh Common.. you can do it!!!

Fantastic article. If there can be an Cricket idol for anybody who knows a bit about Cricket, that can undoubbedly be only Sachin Tendulkar. What a humble personality he is. I used to feel proud to be an Indian for the culture that we have inherited. Today I feel proud to be Indian, since Sachin is and Inian as well. Keep going Sachin, there are more to achieve in Cricket.. How about a 500 runs from 350 balls in Test Cricket? Oh Common.. you can do it!!!

Awesome article on the awesomest cricketer! Looking forward to more from you, Bala.

sachin this record shud be broken by herschelle gibbs y did u broke it

thank you for praising the fact

thank you for praising the fact

6+4 dulkar... sachin reborn.....

A Brilliant Article, indeed..... Sachin's passion and commitment for the game is absolutely awesome. Look at the way he spoke after being awarded the man of the match - he was praising the innings of Dinesh Karthik, Yusuf Pathan and MS Dhoni - typical of him to keep the game situation in the right perspective. His humility can be a great inspiration for everyone of us in our daily lives. I consider myself lucky to be living now and see Sachin conquer peaks one after the other. I really wish that India can lift the World Cup next year and fill his cup of joy.

sachin ramesh tendulkar is a gem no one has come near him in class and he is batting genius. his
achievements are becoming better and better everyday. you have correctly described him And that he suggests, in the true spirit of Vicar-ship, the existence of sublimation and transcendentalism in sport, also leaving us with the comfort that even after he ceases to perform his superhuman deeds on the cricket pitch he will live on in our minds - fuelling our dreams and defining our spectrums of possibilities.
future generations when they hear about him will
see him as god of the game. great god is nearing
100 international centuries. bradmans record of
29 test centuries stayed for 35 years. whereas i feel sachin tendulkar record will stand for 70 years minimum because there will be very few players who will last for 20 years and above in internatinal cricket.

faboulous innings

If cricket is my religion, then Sachin Tendulkar is my GOD.

tHE ARTICLE AND THE COMMENTS ARE WORTH READING AGAIN AND AGAIN

One of the best pieces I have read on any cricketer, I have been reading about the game since 1959. The only other article that I can relate it to, is from the late Historian, CLR James, who defined the mastery of one of West Indies best - for all times, the great Rohan Kanhai,icon of Gavaskar, who converted his 1st test century to a double in Madras 1958-59. I am from Guyana and have been following international cricket ever since. I was in Georgetown when Sunil G. converted his 1st test century into a double at Port Of Spain, Trinidad, as well, 1971. Tendulkar is admired by cricket fans all over the US, Canada, the West Indies and Guyana. I too am blessed to be living his era.

Good health and more brilliant performances to Cricket's greatest Ambassador.

We love you Sachin.
From all of your fans, USA.

Tendulkar is truly great ! But spare a thought for Gavaskar. No one in Indian cricket had ever had the guts, the technique or the commitment to stand up to hostile fast balling till Gavaskar showed up. Bradman was passed, 34 centuries scaled, 10,000 runs posted. All unheard of and unthinkable till then. Gavaskar carried the hopes and aspirations of a nation. Imagine, a young lad’s fantasy being ignited by all this, and saying to himself “I want to be like him”. Imagine the lad, in his formative years, being face to face with his hero. Perhaps Tendulkar might still have been a great batsman, but it cannot be denied that Gavaskar, in some subliminal and unconscious ways, helped launch Tendulkar toward the rarified peaks he is scaling. Jaisimha for Gavaskar; Gavaskar for Tendulkar; Tendulkar for Sehwag who too said, “I want to be like him”. And all of humanity on top of the ape who never held a bat but said to himself, “Hm, I want to stand up and walk on two instead of all four!

Sachin you r the "GOD" of cricket.You r not a example of cricket players. u r any kind of game.I wish u always play for "INDIA" nd make 100 century both

a great article dedicated to a great personality!!! thank you Sachin on behalf of every Indian for letting us watch you play..

Balachandran,
An article well written, particularly the incidental, transcendental part. I guess that area applies to any field where excellence is pursued. Only the master can make a masterpiece out of a master chance. I now believe in God, he is just one alter ego for excellence, Sachin is another..

Knew this place would be crowded :)
superb article!
Congratulations and keep it up.

what a wonderful man and wonderful article describing him..good write up!

Wonderful article on the genius. It is tough to overcome the injuries and change ur natural game. But the tweaks he made to his game were really awesome. He lost some precious time with injuries when other batsmen scoring runs for fun. But i am(millions of us are) glad that he is back. We luv u sachin. U r the greatest ambassador for cricket. U are the role model to millions of people. Thanks for those sweet memories. We can live our life happily by cherishing them.

Great read as always. Congrats to Cricinfo for finally noticing fresh pieces. This piece has the freshness of Spring to it and the everlasting beauty of Sachin's drives.

Long live the lord of Sachin and all the fame to Balachandran too

Superb article bala. Boss (Real boss in my company) you are great fan of sachin tendulkar and today I am your fan. Salute for Sachin 200's.

A masterPiece to Describe a master batsman. Hold on your breath there is still a plenty on offer.
Nice work Bala. Hope you write an article when Sachin Surpasses LARA in TEST. Cheers to SRT.

This article really a nice one.. I love sachin very much.. i love this article too..

@vicks:
I believe Even the Lord cant prevent the little master to broke records.HE is the CRICKET as said by the article. ? Gibbs to sachin? i am shocked to see this. I am wondering whether GIBBS will be a apart of the SA squad in the future matches.!!!!

Great Read