Why is SRT tense while getting to personal milestones?

[Chandan]

You have a man here who batted an entire ODI innings of 60 overs and remained unbeaten on 36. I think that really tells you all you need to know about him' date= in terms of his priorities on a cricket field. But coming back to Sachin's milestone the other day, what I found most inexplicable was Gavaskar's almost child-like obsession with numbers. Its like how kids go after candy..'I want one candy, two candie, no three candies. For eff's sake, Sachin had just scored 17,000 runs in ODI cricket. Thats 17,000 runs worth of hard-work, dedication, passion and comittment to the game. Yet, Gavaskar did not spend a moment talking about any of that. Instead, his mindless drooling over the insignificant numbers in my opinion, trivialized Sachin's contribution to Indian cricket as a whole.

Didn't expect this from you Marirs. These things are saved for few ignorant and arrogant Aussies. When Gavaskar scored 36 n.o in a one day inning, many batsmen were confused how to approach an ODI at that time. It was a new thing for everyone and Gavaskar being a genuinely defensive batsman approached it the way he approaches a test inning. You were so quick to point this fault of his but how on earth could you forget that he was the man to hit the fastest ton for us as well, and that too for quite some time? What do you have to say about that? And perhaps you all do not understand the magnitude of scoring 17,000 runs because you have never played at the highest level and are perhaps too blind to see how he is miles ahead of others, meaning that it is such a great feat and it is right to overwhelm an Indian who has played at the highest level and knows about the rarity of the feat. Australians keep on harping about that 99.96 average. Why? Because it is so rare that no one has come even close to that! but no one will ever speak a word of disrespect about Sir Don even if they are talking about an individual record. But we Indians? We don't even think for a second before mocking our own legends. If you want to know what Gavaskar says about the country read his articles:

Youngsters must earn national cap Sunil Gavaskar, Agencies November 07, 2009 First Published: 23:29 IST(7/11/2009) Last Updated: 23:33 IST(7/11/2009) India will have to make a huge mental effort to overcome their second close defeat in the series if they are hoping to win the remaining two games and with it the series as well. However, they will have to wait a while to be the No. 1 after they missed out on a splendid chance in Mohali. And, if they lose this series and still go on to be No. 1 later because of the number of ODIs they are playing, they will know that they don't quite deserve to be there because they lost to the team that mattered. It is with this in view that India need to approach the next two matches. That a depleted Australian team is giving them such a hard time reflects not only on the standard of the domestic structures in the two countries but also on the policies of the two countries. If one takes a look at the replacements that have come in for those regular Australian players, one will notice that all those who have flown in at short notice are players who have been playing domestic cricket for a few years and have got the national call-up after that. They, therefore, have played more than a few tough games and so are better prepared to take that next step to the international level. Here, one is not talking about the quality of cricket because that is debatable. Like the Indians, the Australian Test and international players also hardly get to play in the domestic circuit because of the busy international schedule, so it's not as if the quality is top class. It is the competitive element that is fiercer and that prepares the Australians to cope with tough situations better than most others in the world. Australia, like India plays in the ICC under-19 World Cup but how many of its U-19 players get called up to play for the country based on their junior performances? They have to go through the grind of first-class cricket and perform at that level before they get a whiff of the Australian cap. Mike Hussey had to score and score for years before he got a chance to play in the national team. He brings all that experience with him. India, on the other hand, is generous while handing out its national caps and because of the obsession with youth those who haven’t had a full season of first-class cricket get the cap without actually earning it. By all means encourage the youth but only after he has delivered at the first-class level and not in some junior event.

You can see how much he values the national cap! This can come only from a person who cares about the country, its cricketing health, its future...not just some milestones as you guys are pointing out! .

[vvvslaxman]

Australians keep on harping about that 99.96 average. Why? .

They have plenty of other things to harp about.. like 3 world cup wins in a row. 2 championship wins in a row. World no.1 for almost a decade.

[ViruRulez]

why was the team tensed today and why this performance :mad::mad::mad::mad::mad:

[The Dark Horse]

India, on the other hand, is generous while handing out its national caps and because of the obsession with youth those who haven’t had a full season of first-class cricket get the cap without actually earning it. By all means encourage the youth but only after he has delivered at the first-class level and not in some junior event. .

++

[Chandan]

They have plenty of other things to harp about.. like 3 world cup wins in a row. 2 championship wins in a row. World no.1 for almost a decade.

So? Why do they still hold that 99.96 as a holy grail? Because they respect their legends! And if you do not understand why and in which context I've replied to Marirs post, please don't reply to trivialize things. I'm talking about Marirs deriding a legend of India.

[graphic23]

He's a selfish guy who cares only for his milestones and not for the team. Isn't it obvious? The most undeserved player for the team. His 17000 runs dont mean anything because not every run has contributed to a win. Useless numbers, useless player. Right? We should have more players like Yuvraj Singh in the team. What a batsman!

[DomainK]

Very few understand how Sachin Tendulkar retains the same hunger for runs, the same passion for Cricket even after 20 years. He has himself said many times that even today when he takes the field, he feels nervous. He feels the excitement of representing his country at the highest level. The reason why he can still play cricket with the same intensity is that he still has the same nervousness when he plays. The expert of field warfare and espionage stress again and again that a bit of nervousness and a bit of fear is always necessary for success as it keeps one alert and on the feet. An soldier or a spy either makes a fatal mistake when they are not nervous anymore because then overconfidence kicks in or they retire because they miss the thrill they once experienced on the job. The same goes for a game like cricket. You keep getting the thrill out of it as long as you retain a bit of nervousness. That's what hunger for success is. You flag goals and as they approach, you feel nervous because you know that you worked hard and dreamed of growing this big. You find out standards unthinkable even in dream for others and you achieve that. Then you ruthlessly forget that you are the best in the world and set another standard for yourself and get back to hard work to achieve that. Ponting said the other day that Sahcin sets standards for players like him. That's his motivation. So who sets the standards for Sachin Tendulkar himsef? Youngsters come in with huge potential in them and they look upto a Sachin Tendulkar, they want to achieve the heights that this man has proved to be possible. That's what keeps them motivated. So what motivates the man who is already up there sitting far above the rest? What keeps him going? Who does he look upto? What standards does he follow? Who inspires him? How does he measure how far more he can grow? The answer is that he does it all by himself. He is a lonely man up there. No one else knows what it feels like up there. He has to find his own inspiration within himself. He sets his own goals and he chases them down ruthlessly. And yes, he is nervous about it as much as a youngster is nervous when he tries to achieve the heights of Tendulkar. If Sachin Tendulkar had stopped getting nervous on a cricket field years ago, his career would have been over years ago.

[king2be98]

He's one of those men who is mnore concerned with personal milestones than the team itself. I've seen many players/captains who put themselves before their teams. I use Inzama and Younis as an example so you get an idea, back in 2005 Inzamam wanted Younis to get a 100 in the Bangalore test, but Younis on 83* iniated the declaration so that Pakistan had enough time to win the game. Now facial expressions and body language do tell a story and they also define a man's character. Sehwag plays with carefree abandon, everytime on the verge of a 100 the man just wants to smash the ball as he has been all innings, Tendulkar looks petrified almost worried about not getting his 100. You don't have to be very intelligent to figure out which one cares more about the milestones and which doesn't and also which one fears not getting that milestone. To be honest, I hate batsmen who slow down or start killing time and balls when they get near a hundred or any milestone, it might benefit the team if soemtimes they were dismissed.

[Lord]

did anyone see that clip before Sachin got 17000thh run?everybody was nervous,one man was praying with eyes closed,as soon as Sachin got it,the wide smiles were back again,the man that was praying sttarted talking on the phone,looking lot more relaxed,the match was still a long way away t be won,but it meant something for them. if these people,who have supposedly come to see India win,can get nervous about Sachin's 17000th run,why the eff cant Sachin?

[Lord]

He's one of those men who is mnore concerned with personal milestones than the team itself. I've seen many players/captains who put themselves before their teams. I use Inzama and Younis as an example so you get an idea, back in 2005 Inzamam wanted Younis to get a 100 in the Bangalore test, but Younis on 83* iniated the declaration so that Pakistan had enough time to win the game. Now facial expressions and body language do tell a story and they also define a man's character. Sehwag plays with carefree abandon, everytime on the verge of a 100 the man just wants to smash the ball as he has been all innings, Tendulkar looks petrified almost worried about not getting his 100. You don't have to be very intelligent to figure out which one cares more about the milestones and which doesn't and also which one fears not getting that milestone. To be honest, I hate batsmen who slow down or start killing time and balls when they get near a hundred or any milestone, it might benefit the team if soemtimes they were dismissed.

i'll take selfish Sachin over unselfish Sehwag anyday.just because against Pak,Sehwag has been able to do it successfully doesnt mean iits the right approach.in the Melbourne test against in 2003,he threw his wicket away on 195 ,trying to go for glory,India collapsed n we lost the game,sometimes its better to be 'selfish' n look for hundred before exploding.if Sachin becomes too defensive nearing a milestone,Sehwag becomes too aggresive.its human nature,u just cant remain the same

[Ram]

Chandan, have you not realized that you have contradicted yourself in a matter of two sentences. You said this;

You were so quick to point this fault of his but how on earth could you forget that he was the man to hit the fastest ton for us as well, and that too for quite some time? What do you have to say about that?

And then, you also said this;

When Gavaskar scored 36 n.o in a one day inning, many batsmen were confused how to approach an ODI at that time. It was a new thing for everyone and Gavaskar being a genuinely defensive batsman approached it the way he approaches a test inning.

How could a batsmen capable of one of the fastest 100s by an Indian, possibly 'approach it like a test inning', when its so evidently is not? The point of a cricket match is you play to win, and not 'test the waters out in the middle', like what you suggested.

And perhaps you all do not understand the magnitude of scoring 17,000 runs because you have never played at the highest level and are perhaps too blind to see how he is miles ahead of others, meaning that it is such a great feat and it is right to overwhelm an Indian who has played at the highest level and knows about the rarity of the feat.

Fair point. I have never played cricket at the highest level. Heck, I have not even come close. And you're probably right, I dont understand the magnitude of the achievement, coz I have never 'Been there and done that'. But guess what Chandan, I have listened to 1000s of hours of cricket commentary for over a decade and a half, and no other cricketing legend even comes any near matching Gavaskar's obsession with numbers. I have never seen a Clive Lloyd or an Ian Chappell suggest that a batsmen must make sure they score a few runs above and beyond their century, just in case one of their earlier run was found out to be a leg-bye and hence they lose their century I have never seen a Mohinder Amarnath or a Barry Richards chide an up and coming young batsmen (Rohit Sharma) for being dismissed without scoring a 100, when their real reason for complaint must have been that he got dismissed a few runs short of the target (in the 1st CB series final..) The blunt fact of the matter is, no other cricketing legend can even come close to Gavaskar, in terms of the time he dedicates talking about stats. So, are they all wrong then?

Australians keep on harping about that 99.96 average. Why? Becuse it is so rare that no one has come even close to that! but no one will ever speak a word of disrespect about Sir Don even if they are talking about an individual record. But we Indians? We don't even think for a second before mocking our own legends.

You're not going to get me to defend the Aussies (some of them are an evidently arrogant bunch..) but I have not come across too many instances where they have endlessly harped on about Bradman's average. Sure, there maybe the odd mention of it here and the, but nothing as incessant as Gavaskar's dronings.

If you want to know what Gavaskar says about the country read his articles: You can see how much he values the national cap! This can come only from a person who cares about the country, its cricketing health, its future...not just some milestones as you guys are pointing out!

Not for a moment am I trying to belittle Gavaskar's contribution to the Indian cricket scene. He came to the scene when we were cricketing super-minnows and scored runs against top-class opponents in tough conditions like no other Indian batsmen had done till then. But I take strong exception to what I call the culture of selfishness that is so self-evident in his comentary. He seems a man more obsessed with his own game and what he does on the field, than the bigger collective picture of the team. For me at least, that attitude is like cancer. It destroys the essence of team sport and divided people. I simply CANNOT stand that. And you dont have to take my word for it. Many players in the past have alluded to Gavaskar's apparent 'selfishness', the one and only Kapil Dev included (in his autobiography..)

[graphic23]

Um, the fastest innings came 12 years after the infamous 36 n.o. 1976 was the first time an ODI world cup was being played. He hadn't played too many ODIs up until the time. His relative success later in the format shows that he adjusted pretty well to the environment.

[Ram]

Um' date=' the fastest innings came 12 years after the infamous 36 n.o.[/quote'] And your point being?

[graphic23]

Point being that Chandan is not contradicting herself when she mentions both the innings. 12 years can change the mindset of any player.

[Ram]

Point being that Chandan is not contradicting herself when she mentions both the innings. 12 years can change the mindset of any player.

So, you're saying it takes 12 years for someone to figure out that you cannot bat out an entire 60 overs of an ODI inning and score only 36 runs? Even a child, let alone India's then Premier batman, should have known the purpose and intent of having a Limited overs international.. Excuses like 'Oh it was the beginning of ODIs.. he wasnt sure what to do..' are super-lame.

[graphic23]

Why are they lame? Did everyone succeed in T20 in their first game? Did they not have to take time to adjust to the format? And, my argument by no means implies that the 100 off some 80 deliveries was Gavaskar's only notable ODI knock. The 36 n.o. was the 3rd ODI, and it came in the world cup. Take a look at the density of ODI matches at the time:

28  	-  	-  	0  	0  	 	v England  	Leeds  	13 Jul 1974  	ODI # 12
20 	- 	- 	0 	0 		v England 	The Oval 	15 Jul 1974 	ODI # 13
36* 	- 	- 	0 	0 		v England 	Lord's 	7 Jun 1975 	ODI # 19
65* 	- 	- 	0 	0 		v East Africa 	Leeds 	11 Jun 1975 	ODI # 24
12 	- 	- 	0 	0 		v New Zealand 	Manchester 	14 Jun 1975 	ODI # 28
4 	1 	10 	0 	0 		v Pakistan 	Sialkot 	13 Oct 1978 	ODI # 55
8 	- 	- 	0 	0 		v West Indies 	Birmingham 	9 Jun 1979 	ODI # 61
55 	- 	- 	0 	0 		v New Zealand 	Leeds 	13 Jun 1979 	ODI # 65
26 	- 	- 	0 	0 		v Sri Lanka 	Manchester 	16 Jun 1979 	ODI # 68
4 	- 	- 	1 	0 		v Australia 	Melbourne 	6 Dec 1980 	ODI # 97
0 	- 	- 	0 	0 		v New Zealand 	Perth 	9 Dec 1980 	ODI # 99
22 	0 	7 	0 	0 		v Australia 	Sydney 	18 Dec 1980 	ODI # 100
1 	- 	- 	0 	0 		v New Zealand 	Brisbane 	21 Dec 1980 	ODI # 102
17 	- 	- 	1 	0 		v New Zealand 	Adelaide 	23 Dec 1980 	ODI # 103

We play as many ODIs in 1.5 years as Gavaskar did in his entire career. When the premier form of cricket played was Tests, and you played a few ODIs sparsely spread through 5 years, it is quite unimaginable to expect everyone to succeed right away. Some do, and some don't. Ultimately, that gavaskar scored 36 n.o. has no bearing on the "stats" aspect of your argument. Perhaps his commentary does but this is irrelevant.

[Gambit]

He's one of those men who is mnore concerned with personal milestones than the team itself. I've seen many players/captains who put themselves before their teams. I use Inzama and Younis as an example so you get an idea' date=' back in 2005 [b']Inzamam wanted Younis to get a 100 in the Bangalore test, but Younis on 83* iniated the declaration so that Pakistan had enough time to win the game.

The same Inzamam, who as captain,selfishly delayed the declaration while waiting to bring up his own 100 against England, something that ultimately cost Pakistan a victory in this game? :hysterical:

[Jersey #10]

http://www.cricinfo.com/ci/engine/match/65035.html it was only the 19th odi of all time but still this is a very irresponsible and disgusting score card.

[Mr. Wicket]

The same Inzamam' date=' who as captain,selfishly delayed the declaration while waiting to bring up his own 100 against England, something that ultimately cost Pakistan a victory in this game? :hysterical:

Gambit, please. This is unnecessary. You should remember that Inzamam does not play for his statistics! After all, he himself said he plays for and deserves "respect and nothing else". http://www.cricinfo.com/superseries/content/story/220227.html Remember this? The great Pakistan captain, hero to millions, winner of matches, conquerer of Australian attacks and tormentor of pace attacks only wanted respect. For him, it wasn't about the statistics, it was just the respect. And yes, he is a team man. Remember the whole fiasco over his non-selection? When he finally got picked as a sub-in for an injured Tendulkar, he cried, moaned and whined about the lack of respect and refused to play. But then he finally realized that it wasn't about him, it was about the team! The whole rather than the individual. So off he went to Australia to take on the mighty attack, the greatest player of pace Imran had ever seen... ... and made 1 and 0 in the Melbourne test with a second-ball duck to the great Bung Lee. http://www.cricinfo.com/ci/engine/current/match/221840.html :hysterical: Didn't even play for his records either there. No sign of him pushing for a fifty, hundred, 150 or any other milestone - he just came and went!

[Laaloo]

Did he actually say this in english? "I am not pleased at all with whatever has happened. Having played cricket with respect and distinction, I don't deserve this at the *** end of my career." :hysterical::hysterical::hysterical::hysterical: