Salute to the Little Master

His 103* at Chennai last week against England is one of the best compiled innings I have ever seen. Some of the other test innings have been more flamboyant but this got rid of the "Tendulkar cannot bat in the second innings" stigma for sure. I had decided to watch the match only until 1:00 am that night as I had to go to work the next day but I got a hunch that something special was about to happen and boy was I glad that I didn't miss it. At no point of time did he play a false shot in this inning. He very much stuck to the basics, curtailed his cover drive and was ticking the scoreboard beautifully. As the total got closer he was more vigilant in his approach and guided Yuvraj in the chase. Below are some of the quotes that others have said about him.

"Sachin is cricket's God"
- Barry Richards.

"He is 99.5 per cent perfect. I'd pay to see him"
- Viv Richards.

"I have seen God. He bats at number 4 for India"
- Mathew Hayden

"There is no shame being beaten by such a great player, Sachin is perhaps only next to the Don"
- Steve Waugh.

"I still think Tendulkar is the best batsmen in the world ahead of Steve Waugh and Lara"
- Glenn McGrath.

"You take Don Bradman away and he is next up I reckon"
- Steve Waugh.

"Cricketers like Sachin come once in a lifetime, and I am privileged he played in my time"
- Wasim Akram

"Sachin Tendulkar is a genius. I'm a mere mortal"
- Brian Lara

"Don't bowl him bad balls, he hits the good ones for fours"
- Michael Kasprowicz.

"It's scary, where the hell do we bowl to him"
- Allan Border.

"Yeah mate, but that's with all great players"
- Ian Chappell.

"He's better than Ben Hur"
- Paul Wilson.

"There's no doubt about it. He is the best"
- Tony Grieg.

"Technically, you can't fault Sachin. Seam or spin, fast or slow - nothing is a problem"
- Geoffrey Boycott.

"Destined to be a great"
- Barry Richards.

"You have to watch India in India truly to appreciate the pressure that Sachin Tendulkar is under every time he bats. Outside grounds, people wait until he goes in before paying to enter. They seem to want a wicket to fall even though it is their own side that will suffer"
- Shane Warne.