Tendulkar, I believe, always has a plan when he walks to the crease. In the same way that a painter regards his canvas before he begins to paint, Tendulkar never begins an innings without a plan. Each one is a work of art, and he avails himself of resources that, it seems, he alone possesses. With his unlimited repertoire of strokes, Tendulkar paints a picture of complete domination from the very first delivery he faces. In this regard, he is very much like Sir Vivian Richards, but not even Sir Vivian – arguably the greatest batsman of his era – is quite in this class. A point Richards himself acknowledged: "I would say he’s 99.5 per cent perfect." "...if Bradman could bat like this man does then he was dynamite. Players like Sachin deserve to be preserved in cotton wool.”
Indeed, Tendulkar has elevated the art of batting to an unprecedented level of perfection. His style is a unique blend of impeccable timing, flawless technique, breathtaking elegance and effortlessness. Tendulkar at bat is the very essence of beauty, and his uncanny ability to punish even good deliveries separates him from the rest. According to Barry Richards, few batsmen have the ability to turn a match on its head like Sachin does. And despite his individual brilliance, Tendulkar has a greater purpose in mind, his team. “I’m happiest when I can make runs and help the Indian team win matches”, he once remarked.
It seemed inevitable that Tendulkar would achieve this feat. Since his debut, he has been the most talked about batsman in the game. The very first day that Gavaskar saw him at tryouts, he remarked: "When I saw Sachin play a flick wide of mid-on in the nets for the Probables team, I knew here was a special talent." In sports, when a special talent arrives on the scene, the burden of expectation is never far behind, and many a promising career has crumbled under the weight of such expectations. Ordinarily though, these expectations target short term goals, continuously raising the bar to more ambitious milestones along one’s career. In Tendulkar’s case, however, it was quite different. Tendulkar was saddled with a career-long expectation. He was hailed as the batsman to re-write the record books. It is often said that one should aim for the moon, and, even if you miss, you will still land among the stars. Unfortunately for Tendulkar, there was no safe haven among the stars. Never before has a player been saddled with an expectation of such magnitude. It is a tribute to his talent and his character that the burden of such lofty expectations had always rested easily on his shoulders. Nevertheless, in Mohali on Friday, when he spoke to the media he had a smile of relief on his face, and somewhere in the great beyond the Don must have been smiling too – his modern day incarnation continues the glorious legacy.
Sachin Tendulkar later addressed the media:
On the journey:
Success is a process and during that journey sometimes there are stones thrown at you and you convert them into milestones. It's a great feeling.
On how long he thinks he can keep the record:
I don't what is going to happen in future. I started as a 16-year-old, without any such targets. There might be another 16-year-old, who might not be having any targets and who knows where he is going to go.
On the pressure:
"To be honest, I was not under any pressure for this record. I knew that I have to go out and play my game. It will come at some stage. There was no burden as such. Today I decided just to watch the ball as closely as possibly."
On the sparse crowd to witness the record-breaking run:
"I did not feel anything about the poor crowd attendance. It's about quality not quantity. I got a fantastic reception in a pleasing moment. I appreciate it every applaud whichever came in my way I take it wholeheartedly."
On the missing World Cup:
"That is something I would like to have. We were close to it in 2003. It was so close yet so far. I'm not looking that far ahead [2011]. I just want go out and enjoy myself and my game and not think of any targets. If it there is in the vicinity I will focus on it. Right now I want to enjoy myself."
On getting there in Mohali:
"I always wanted to do it in front of the home crowd and I'm quite happy that an Indian has achieved that record. It is not my record, it is India's record. I'm happy it has been done here."
On his family not being there at the ground:
"It is not my family style to go over at the top. I know they will be extremely happy."