Sachin Tendulkar driven by fear of failure

[King]

London: The only time Sachin Tendulkar sounded a touch sharp during the media session here on Tuesday was when a journalist asked him about recent criticism. How did he react to those saying he needed to look in the mirror? ?I ... More... ‘I don’t want to put any pressure on myself’ Special Correspondent London: The only time Sachin Tendulkar sounded a touch sharp during the media session here on Tuesday was when a journalist asked him about recent criticism. How did he react to those saying he needed to look in the mirror? “I don’t think I need to respond to such things,” said Tendulkar. Otherwise he answered thoughtfully and generously. Excerpts: Extremely special: The first time I saw Lord’s on TV was when India won here in 1983. I was only 10 then, and did not know what was happening but I joined the celebration. So there are a lot of fond memories and one would definitely want to make the most of the outing here. Lord’s hundred — players’ dream: I don’t want to put any pressure on myself. In Test cricket I have not been able to do that, but in the game between MCC and Rest of the World I managed to get one. I mean this i s the ground all the players dream of getting hundreds, I am no different. I would want to get one. May be three hundreds in all the Tests here. Targets are a secret: I don’t set targets as such and I know vaguely what has to be done in a series, but I would not let that dominate rest of the things. You want to keep your mind as free as possible and that is what is needed. Setting targets is important as you know what to contribute to the team. I never disclose my targets as such. Certain things I keep to myself and not even my family knows about it. Last tour of England? Looks like it is. God knows what is in store, but the previous tour was in 2002 and the next one may be 2011 or 2012, and that would take some doing. We can’t take tomorrow for granted. Right now, I want to concentrate on this series. I don’t want to divide my energy in various directions. We have taken responsibility: Off the field you may have a lot of things, but on the field we seniors have always taken the responsibility. It really does not matter who the captain really is, what matters is that the seniors and juniors get together and put up a good show. Better player: There are changes obviously since my debut. Everybody wants to get better. I think I am a better player. When you play 17-18 years, you learn a lot of things and you experience a lot of things. The opposition gives out p articular signals and your experience helps you pick those signals and handle them.

[King]

Sachin Tendulkar driven by fear of failure Despite being easily the most prolific international batsman in history, Sachin Tendulkar's name doesn't feature on the honours board in the visitors' dressing-room at Lord's, writes Simon Hughes. More... Sachin Tendulkar driven by fear of failure By Simon Hughes Last Updated: 1:50am BST 18/07/2007 Page 1 of 2 OK, here are the statistics. First the 388 one-day internationals during which he has pillaged 15,051 runs with a record 41 centuries; then the 137 Test matches producing 10,922 runs and 37 centuries. Thirty-seven Test centuries: the most any Englishman has made is 22. He needs just six singles to overtake Steve Waugh and move into third place in the all-time list of heaviest Test run scorers. With his amalgamated tally of 25,973 runs and 78 centuries, Sachin Tendulkar is, of course, easily the most prolific international batsman in history.

Those are the facts. They quantify a career of extraordinary achievement that has made Tendulkar a sporting megastar and the richest cricketer that ever lived. Quite apart from the restaurant chain named after him and the Ferraris he is gifted, last year he signed a three-year commercial deal worth £22 million with Iconix, the marketing arm of Saatchi and Saatchi. Currently he advertises on TV everything from mobile phones and motor bikes to soft drinks, biscuits, cereal and deodorants. Indians literally speak, eat and breathe him. But what about the man? What lies beneath the diminutive frame and the cherubic face that has contrived to make him such a phenomenon, and how does he cope with the adoration and expectation of a billion Indians? Now 34, and in his 19th season on the international stage, can he quell the rumblings of general decline and steer India to their first Test series win in England for 20 years, or will this be the Little Master's quiet swansong? If Tendulkar had seen reports of the furore surrounding David Beckham's arrival at Los Angeles Galaxy last weekend he would have been permitted a wry smile. It's the kind of thing he deals with on a daily basis back home. Feted by a cricket-mad people, he is gawped and goggled at wherever he goes. Hundreds of rubber-neckers cluster around the Indian team bus as the players leave for the ground at the end of a day. They cry Sachin's name and attempt to touch him or push scraps of paper, rupee notes, even dried leaves at him to be signed. The same circus confronts him when the team arrive a short while later at their hotel. They are escorted inside to the lobby where a third wave of well-wishers - those smartly enough dressed to be let in - descend on their heroes requesting photo opportunities with their mobile phones. It is an exhausting business being an Indian star and Tendulkar, forever the No 1 target, has evolved a particular technique to deal with such attention. He blanks everyone, deliberately avoiding eye contact. He justifies this by explaining that if he engages with just one face, one person, many others will see his lowered guard and clamour for his attention, and the situation would quickly get out of control. He knows such situations would be emotionally draining. Something has to give. As it happens this avoidance approach suits Tendulkar. He is something of a paradox. He performs on a global stage yet actually doesn't like attention, invariably preferring the comfort and security of his home and close family to the sycophancy and scrutiny of public life. He is a private person, who occasionally used to venture out (sometimes in disguise) but now invariably retreats to his hotel room after play and, when travelling, plugs into his iPod rather than risk conversing with anyone. A rich and glamorous businesswoman who found herself sat next to him on a plane one day was amazed that he didn't pay her even a single glance throughout the journey. In keeping with his personality, his batting is entirely methodical. It revolves around careful preparation and an economy of movement. His strokes are neat and compact. There is the occasional streak of virtuosity but his batting lacks the pure showmanship and bravado of other latter day greats like Lara or Viv Richards. Where those men attempted to demolish attacks, Tendulkar dissects them: he is a surgeon at work. To Lara a net was an occupational hazard; to Tendulkar it is the laboratory to create clinical perfection. He plans his innings meticulously and is forever working on something, roughing up practice pitches outside leg stump to simulate facing Shane Warne (he made 155 not out after doing so), or yesterday at Lord's honing his judgment against left-arm swingers and spinners, to replicate the angle and style of England's Ryan Sidebottom and Monty Panesar. While Lara has been ostentatious in everything he has done - building extravagant homes, dating beautiful women, playing daring innings - living life on a Snakes and Ladders board, Tendulkar likes consistency and routine, residing in a duplex apartment with his wife and son in the leafy, seaside Bombay suburb of west Bandra close to where he grew up, dominated by plasma screens and hi-fis, and probably computer chess. So far this intense single-mindedness has been a strength. It has enabled him to concentrate on the job without distraction, and pile up records. But there are suggestions that, as he embarks on his 19th year of international cricket, it is becoming a weakness. Friends say he is almost a recluse and they find it hard to talk to him. As his power wanes, he is increasingly sensitive of criticism and wary of advice, almost as if he is in denial. He had a fraught relationship with Greg Chappell, India's recently departed coach, because Chappell confronted his emerging flaws and proposed solutions. Questions last week from a journalist about Tendulkar's apparent vulnerability against pace bowling were blocked with a blunt no comment. But time waits for no one, and he is not the dominant force he was, as only one Test century in three years against a front-line Test nation - Sri Lanka - proves. After the disastrous World Cup there was an unprecedented call for his removal. Watching him practising at Lord's yesterday, a diminutive figure with bat and pads that appear too big for him, and hearing his thin, reedy voice, it is hard to escape the conclusion that he is a boy who never grew up. He is the Peter Pan of cricket, a precocious genius who retains a touchingly naive view of the world. He believes inherently that if he continues to do his thing, the power will return and those nasty Captain Hooks (the bowlers) will be cut back down to size. The evidence, however, is that - at international level - he has developed a slight fear of failure. Latterly he has been more tentative in his play, less commanding, and it has cost him his wicket for an average of only 38 (as against a career average of 55). It seemed to have become a complex at this year's World Cup where, in the two key games against Bangladesh and Sri Lanka he seemed apprehensive and reluctant to play a shot, and was bowled both times for a sum total of four runs. Recently there have been signs of him returning to a more dominant approach, and he toyed with the young England Lions bowlers last Saturday. Yet he has become so fastidious about his preparation he will not feel ready until he has gone through every permutation of bowlers and strategies. Yesterday he asked for an extra left-arm seamer to bowl in his net, and has requested two Panesar-like left-arm spinners be provided today (how ironic that India can't supply one themselves). He has been laboriously fine-tuning his judgment outside off stump, recalling that England's favoured way of dismissing him is with a repetitive attack wide of the stumps. You could look at this meticulousness two ways. Either its assiduous attention to detail, leaving no stone unturned in the quest for perfection, or its obsession bordering on neurosis that is in danger of curtailing his natural flair. There is a risk of paralysis by analysis. Bowlers used to be in awe of Tendulkar. Have the tables finally turned? There is a mitigating factor. For all his amazing achievements, Tendulkar's name is not among the legends on the honours board in the visitors' dressing-room at Lord's. He has never made a Test century at the headquarters of cricket, indeed his highest score there is 31. Though he claims not to be motivated by statistics, he is keen, not to say desperate, to set the record straight. But, as Confucius might say, he who is intensely desiring, risks misfiring.

[King]

One reason why Tendulkar has been able to consistently score is because of the work he puts in. He trains hard and expects that to pay off. Hopefully it does pay off and it would be nice to see him in good form. Tendulkar is "Peter Pan" of cricket :haha: That is one apt nick name

[Donny]

Another Sach thread. Another Sach article. Another silly headline. Yes, Ravi, I respect this as an Indian fansite but this has all been said (written) before.

[King]

These are articles. I don't see any harm in reading these. The original writer has written to reach the audience and we are providing it, that's about it Donny.

[Donny]

Sure. It's valid to put the article in but did it need another topic ? There's one just below this one.

[King]

I hear ya mate but this is one of the topics that was in the feed section that was moved here. To move it into a different thread takes a lot of effort. Just moving topic from one forum to another is easier.

[varun]

I hear ya mate but this is one of the topics that was in the feed section that was moved here. To move it into a different thread takes a lot of effort. Just moving topic from one forum to another is easier.

Just merge the threads Ravi :tounge_smile:

[King]

Just merge the threads Ravi :tounge_smile:

I could but not when they are originally in different forums.

[varun]

I could but not when they are originally in different forums.

Umm, after moving ? I agree it's a bit of a hassle.. but just one more step.. Move, then merge.

[Chandan]

Why is the English media so obsessed with Sachin this time?

[King]

They have always been obsessed Chandan. I was in UK in 96 and the number of reports about Tendulkar that use to don the daily was innumerous. Every knock of his attracted headlines those days and I see the volume has only gone up these days.

[Donny]

It's understandable given his profile and the possibility/probability of it being his swansong.

[King]

There you go Donny, I've added another article on Tendulkar to this one. :thumbs_up:

[King Tendulkar]

Sachin thread zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz:tounge_smile: Even i am getting bored talking about him