Viv Richards: Thank you for the magic Sachin

Thank you for the magic. As Sachin Tendulkar stood there thanking all those who have accompanied him on his magnificent journey, a whole nation and the whole cricketing fraternity was silently scripting their own vote of thanks.

Few cricketers are remembered for the way they played. Fewer still are remembered for what their play meant for their fans. Sachin falls into the latter category. Along with Sunny Gavaskar, he made Indians proud of being who they are and these guys made three generations of Indians almost want to be five feet, five inches tall! These two pocket-sized giants made us realise that stature is what makes a man tall.

I have had wonderful interactions with Sachin over the years. I will confess that I always felt flattered when he told me that he enjoyed and admired my batting. To have an admirer of such quality and genius made me realise that I must have done something right! As a result of this, we have always sought each other’s company when the opportunity presented itself. We have had many stimulating chats about the game and what really struck me about him was that he was endlessly fascinated by the technique and art of batsmanship. He was a master and student of the game at the same time.

I met him once when he was not at his best in the mid-2000s and he asked me many questions about whether one should cut out shots. On another occasion he asked me about how one knew when it was the right time to go? I had told him it was when the enjoyment diminished and that he should decide it following his own conscience. I also told him that, no matter how long you played, you were a retired player for much, much longer.

I had been invited by the BCCI for this final series, but sadly could not come over. Seeing the scenes on Saturday, I knew that the loss was entirely mine.

The farewell moment has come and Sachin has bowed out with the grace, humility and dignity that defined his career for all these years. The series and the final moment could not be scripted better from his point of view. As a West Indian I am very embarrassed by the performance of the visiting team. But that is not the discussion we should be having here.

Sachin has left the team in a very strong position, with the likes of Virat Kohli, Shikhar Dhawan, Cheteshwar Pujara and Rohit Sharma all coming into their own. The next generation is here and there are flashes of the imperiousness of Sachin in Kohli and shot selection of Sharma. The game will march on and the Indian team has an interesting year ahead, starting with the tour to South Africa.

That said, there will be a huge gap in the Indian dressing rooms for some time. M.S. Dhoni and his young team will miss the elder statesman. For fans, this is the final goodbye to a golden generation of Indian cricket that had batting stars like Rahul Dravid, Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly and V.V.S. Laxman. It was a special bunch that gave India the steel and self-belief that has now been handed to the next generation.

As the baton passes, I can see Sachin embracing the private life with his family that he must have craved all these years. I also know that his gentle statesmanship will never be too far away from the game. If it was an emotional time for a billion Indians, it was a tough day for the cricket world at large. A bit of magic left the cricket world. Thank you, Sachin for making it last so long.

— Gameplan