LEGENDS' QUOTES ON SACHIN TENDULKAR -
Sachin Tendulkar is probably the
most famous cricketer world wide but undoubtedly the most Known Indian
internationally, even in parts where cricket is more an insect than a sport.. In
his over two decade career, Sachin Tendulkar's aura has won him countless fans,
including those who played against him. Every now and then, someone comes up
with a quote on Sachin Tendulkar that are worth reading so in following,
Its my small attempt to collect quotes said for the Legend - Sachin Tendulakar
Mathew Hayden:
I have seen GOD , he bats at no.4 for india in Tests.
Viv Richards:
He is 99.5% Perfect, I'll pay to watch him play. I think he is
marvellous. I think he will fit in whatever category of Cricket that has been
played or will be played, from the first ball that has ever been bowled to the
last ball that's going to be. He can play in any era and at any level.
Sir Don Bradman:
I saw him playing on television and was struck by his technique, so I
asked my wife to come look at him. Now I never saw myself play, but I feel that this player is playing much
the same as I used to play, and she looked at him on Television and said yes,
there is a similarity between the two...hi compactness, technique, stroke
production... it all seemed to gel! In reference to Sachin Tendulkar.
Andy Flower:
There are 2 kind of batsmen in the world. One Sachin Tendulkar. Two all
the others.
Andrew Flintoff:
When you bowl at him you are not just trying to get him out, you are trying to
impress him. "I want him to walk off thinking 'that Flintoff,
he's
all right isn't he? I feel privileged to have played against him.
Kapil Dev:
You can't contain Sachin's deeds in a statistical frame. He brings unstinted joy to the
art of batting. Statistics will happen because cricket is about runs
and wickets. But how can you evaluate Sachin's contributions by just counting
the
number of runs he has scored. To me, he best symbolises the heights an
individual can rise to dominate a team sport. Words can never capture the beauty of
Sachin's cricket.
Mark Waugh:
When you play against Tendulkar, you almost want to see him get a few runs just to
see him bat.
Shahrukh Khan, Indian
actor.
"I would like to thank you
from the bottom of my heart for allowing us to breathe the same air as you
do."
Anjali Tendulkar, Sachin's wife.
"I can be hundred per cent
sure that Sachin will not play for a minute longer when he is not enjoying
himself. He is still so eager to go out there and play. He will play as long as
he feels he can play".
-Peter Rebouck, Australian
journalist.
"On a train from Shimla to
Delhi, there was a halt in one of the stations. The train stopped by for few
minutes as usual. Sachin was nearing century, batting on 98. The passengers,
railwayofficials, everyone on the train waited for Sachin to complete the
century. This Genius can stop time in India!"
Pravin Amre, (his coach at Mumbai) I have played with him long enough to understand his approach but I am
amazed at the man's zeal. He wants to be perfect always. His humility is
amazing. I have seen Sachin carry drinks for the juniormost, much to the embarrassment
of the youngster. His discipline is infectious. For Mumbai nets, he comes in
the Mumbai training gear. He would never don an India cap or T-shirt for a
Mumbai match. He will also not allow anyone to carry his cricket coffin."
Shane Warne:
"Sachin Tendulkar is, in my time, the best player without doubt - daylight second,
Brian Lara third."
Shane Warne:
I'll be going to bed having nightmares of Sachin just running down the
wicket and belting me back over the head for six. He was unstoppable. I don't
think anyone, apart from Don Bradman, is in the same class as Sachin Tendulkar.
He is just an amazing player."
Barry Richards:
Consensus is that Sir Donald Bradman was the best batsman ever to play
Cricket. Sir Don did not play One-Day Cricket but if he did, he could easily be
Sachin Tendulkar.
Allan Donald:
"In my several years of international cricket, Tendulkar remains
the best batsman I have ever
bowled to. It's been a pleasure to bowl at the master batsman even though one
hasn't always emerged with credit from the engagements."
"During our team meetings, we often speak about the importance of
the first 12 balls to Tendulkar. If you get him then you can thank your stars,
otherwise it could mean that tough times lie ahead."
Harsha Bhogle:
In the recently concluded IPL when Sachin drove Ishant Sharma to a
straight drive, he said- "Open the text book..turn to page no. 32"
Andrew Symonds:
wrote on an aussie t-shirt he autographed specially for Sachin. "To
Sachin, the man we all want to be "
A.R.Rahman
Well, I’m no Sachin Tendulkar you know, whenever he takes the field,
people expect him to score a century before he loses his wicket. I can only
give in my best and I always strive to live up to fans expectations, but it’s
not possible to get an Oscar every time.
Virendra Sehwag:
Both of us have come a long away and it is a great honour that
Tendulkar thinks I come close to resembling him as a batsman. It is a great
honour, like a dream come true. If I die tomorrow I'll be the happiest man
because I played this game because of Tendulkar, and Tendulkar himself saying
that I resemble him - there is no bigger compliment than that.
Mathew Hayden:
I have seen GOD , he bats at no.4 for
india in Tests.
Ravi Shashtri:
He is someone sent from up there to play cricket and go back.
Mark Taylor:
We did not lose to a team called india...we lost to a man called
Sachin.
Brain Lara:
Sachin is a genius , i am a mere mortal!
Barry Richards:
Sachin is crickets GOD
Martin Crowe:
The shot played on this ball is only possible for the GOD of cricket.
Paul Strang:
What we [zimbabwe] need is 10 tendulkars.
Steve Waugh:
There is no shame losing to such a great player (sachin).
Mathew Hayden:
His life seems to be a stillness in a frantic world... [When he goes
out to bat], it is beyond chaos - it is a frantic appeal by a nation to one man.
The people see him as a God...
Dennis Lillie:
If I had to bowl to Sachin I would bowl with a halmet on. He hits the
ball so hard.
Steve Waugh:
After being defeated in the Coca-Cola Cup finals in Sharjah) "It
was one of the greatest innings I have ever seen. There is no shame being beaten
by such a great player, Sachin is perhaps only next to the Don''
Michael Kasprowicz:
Don't bowl him bad balls, he hits the good ones for fours."
Wasim Akram:
Today, he showed the world why he is considered the best batsman
around. Some of the shots he played were simply amazing. Earlier, opposing
teams used to feel that Sachin's dismissal meant they could win the game. Today,
I feel that the Indian players, too, feel this way. Wasim Akram, after game at
Hobart, CUB series, 1999
Wasim Akram:
"I dont know what to bowl at him. i bowled an inswinger n he drove
me through covers of d front foot. then i bld an outswinger n he again punched
thr covers of d backfoot(for tamil fans-dai avan eppadi pottalum adikaranda).
He is d toughest batsmen i 've bowled to. He shold live long n score lots of
runs, but not against pakistan(smiling) "- on 24th april 2004 on espn
Sachin's 30th B day program.
Brett Lee:
You might pitch a ball on the off stump and think you have bowled a
good ball and he walks across and hits it for two behind midwicket. His bat
looks so heavy but he just waves it around like it's a toothpick. Brett Lee, on
Sachin Tendulkar's batting, 1999
BBC Sports:
Beneath the helmet, under that unruly curly hair, inside the cranium,
there is something we don't know, something beyond scientific measure.
Something that allows him to soar, to roam a territory of sport that, forget
us, even those who are gifted enough to play alongside him cannot even fathom.
When he goes out to bat, people switch on their television sets and switch off
their lives.
Sunil Gavaskar:
India's fortune will depend on how many runs the little champion
scores. There is no doubt Tendulkar is the real thing.
Richie Benaud:
He has defined cricket in his fabulous, impeccable manner. He is to
batting what Shane Warne is to bowling.
Geoffrey Boycott:
Technically, you can't fault Sachin. Seam or spin, fast or slow nothing
is a problem.
Eddie Barlow:
He is Sachin Tendulkar. I hope he stays Sachin Tendulkar. We need a new
player, a player in his own way. He has a technique which is the hallmark of a
great player. Everything indicates that he will be a great player and I am sure
he will prove me right. Reminds me of Barry Richards.
Greg Chappell:
He is a perfectly balanced batsman and knows perfectly well when to
attack and when to play defensive cricket. He has developed the ability to
treat bowlers all over the world with contempt and can destroy any attack with utmost
ease.
Abdul Qadir:
I Was fielding in the covers Tendulkar came out to bat in his debut
Test at Karachi. I still remember Waqar Younis was at his peak form at that
time. Tendulkar tried to drive Waqar through the covers off his very first ball
in Test cricket but was beaten all ends up. But I walked to captain Imran Khan
and told him 'this kid looks very good' and Imran agree with me.
Sir Garfield Sobers:
I have watched a lot of Tendulkar and we have spoken to each other a
lot. He has it in him to be among the very best.
Peter Roebuck:
Sometime back I had written a piece that said that Sachin's the master
and Lara a genius with his head high up somewhere. That's it!
Jeff Thompson:
Sachin is an attacker. He has much more power than Sunny. He wants to
be the one to set the pace. He has to be on top. That's the buzz about him.
Ian Healy:
Tendulkar is the most comouncy pitch with Hughes, McDermott and Whitney
gunning for him he only had 60-odd when No 11 came in. I've seen him against
Warne too.
Mike Coward:
Sachin's the best. I've had this view since I saw him score that
hundred in Sydney in 1992. He is the most composed batsman I've ever seen.
Hashim Amla:
Nothing bad can happen to us if we're on a plane in India with Sachin
Tendulkar on it. Hashim Amla, the South African batsman, reassures himself as
he boards a flight.
Shahrukh Khan:
"Maybe the country doesn't pray for me like they do for Sachin
Tendulkar, but I know I'm on a good wicket as well."
Martina Navratilova:
"Sachin was so focused. He never looked like getting out. He was
batting with single-minded
devotion. It was truly remarkable. It was a lesson." Tennis legend
joins the Sachin Tendulkar fan club after watching him bat at Sydney.
Alistair Campbell:
After loosing to India in the Coca Cola Cup final at Sharjah in
November '98 "He has everything a top batsman needs. Tendulkar is a
classic example of a player being so good that his age is an irrelevance"
David Boon:
"Technically he stands out as the best because of his ability to
increase the pace at will"
Cricket Historian Vasant Raiji:
"I have always felt C. K. Nayadu was the best. I now think sachin
has the honour of being the most outstanding batsman of all time."
Steve Waugh:
"You take Don Bradman away and he is next up I reckon."
Adam Hollioke:
"In an over I can bowl six different balls. But then Sachin looks
at me with a sort of gentle arrogance down the pitch as if to say 'Can you bowl
me another one?'"
Tony Greig:
He is cool, has magnificent temperament, and is so mature you tend to
forget his age. I can't think of any other example of a player who has so
dominated the world before the age of 25. Allan Border: (after India won the
Coca-Cola cup ) "Hell, if he stayed, even at 11 an over he would have got
it."
Ajay Jadeja:
"I can't dream of an innings like that. He exists where we
can't."
David Gower:
"In the last session in Nagpur, when the Indian chase was still
on, Tendulkar hit a reverse sweep, an orthodox sweep and a lofted cover drive
to (Ian) Blackwell. They were all exquisite cricket shots. To play those shots deliberately
in such quick succession, off almost similar deliveries, was genius. That was a
little jewel, just those 3-4 minutes. "It reminds you how very few people
are special. It was a case of great thinking and good technique."
Gavaskar..back in 1988 to tom alter:
I sat in the office of Sportsweek magazine with that same Sunil
Gavaskar. Ayaz Memon and I
were listening to Gavaskar in one of his rare, priceless moods. The
?Little Master? Was delving deep into his own experience, his own genius, and
bringing forth pearls of wisdom as sudden, and as effective, as his straight-
drives back past the bowler. Then Gavaskar came up with the following statement
(remember, this was in 1988, when Dilip Vengsarkar was about to become captain
of India): "The two best batsmen in Bombay today are Vengsarkar and Sachin
Tendulkar." Full stop. End of statement. The ball crosses the
boundary-line underneath the sight- screen.
Desmond Haynes:
In terms of technique and compactness, Tendulkar is the best: Desmond
Haynes.
Mark Taylor:
He's a phenomenon. We have to be switched on when he plays allow him no
boundries, for then he doesn't stop.
Wasim:
"Cricketers like Sachin come once in a lifetime and I am
privileged he played in my time"
"Tuzhe pata hai tune kiska catch chhoda hai?" Wasim Akram to
Abdul Razzaq when the latter dropped Sachin's catch.
Allan Donald:
His shot selection is superb, he just lines you up and can make you
look very silly. Everything is right in his technique and judgement. There isn't
a fault there. He is also a lovely guy, and over the years I've enjoyed some
interesting chats with him… Sachin is in a different class
to Lara as a professional cricketer. He is a model cricketer, and
despite the intolerable pressures he faces back home, he remains a really nice
guy… Sachin is also the best batsman in the world, pulling away from Brain Lara
every year.
Anil Kumble:
he's shy little gentleman. I am very privileged to have played with him
and seen most of the runs that he has scored. I am also extremely happy to have
shared the same dressing room... He is a very reserved person and generally
keeps to himself. He is very determined, committed and doesn't show too many
emotions. He just goes about doing his job. The thing I admire most about this
man is his poise. The way he moves, elegantly without ever looking out of place
in any condition or company, suggests his pedigree. I remember he had once come
to New Delhi in the 1990s to collect his Arjuna Award (India's highest award to
its top sportspersons) and he asked me if I would attend the function. He is a
very sensitive human being…. Sometimes you feel he really hasn't felt the kind
of competition in the world his talent deserves. I would have loved to see him perform
against top quality cricketers of the previous generation. It would really have
brought out the best in him.
Greame Pollock:
Tendulkar is the best in the world at the moment. Why I've always liked
him is that batsmen tend to be negative at times and I think batting is not
about not getting out - it is to play positively. I think you got to take it to
the bowlers and Sachin is one such player. When you do so, you change the game,
you change bowlers because they suddenly start bowling badly because they are
under pressure.
Ian Chappell:
Whenever I see Sachin play I am reminded of the Graeme Pollock quote of
Cricket being a 'see the ball, hit the ball game.' He hits the ball as if it's
there to be hit.
Ravi Shastri:
"We always knew that Sachin Tendulkar is a great cricketer, but
after the Coca-Cola Cup here, we have seen the birth of a legend. I can't think
of anybody who has batted more authoritatively in one day cricket for India, or
even in the world except for Vivian Richards."
Navjot Sidhu:
"His mind is like a computer. He stores data on bowlers and knows
where they are going to pitch the ball."
Mark Taylor:
"We did not lose to a team called India...we lost to a man called
Sachin" - Mark Taylor, during the test match in Chennai (1997)
Dravid:
Playing in the same team as Sachin is a huge honour. His balance of
mind, shrewd judgement, modesty and, above all, his technical brilliance make
him my all-time hero... You can't get a more complete cricketer than Sachin. He
has everything that a cricketer needs to have. As a batsman, he has the
technique, the hunger and the desire for runs. He always contributes with the
bat as well as on the field. He also is a good fielder and bowls when needs.
You really can't ask for a better cricketer than Sachin... He is a terrific
person and has handled pressure brilliantly. He has handled his success very well and doesn't have
any airs about him. He is a great guy and very good team man. In his heart of
hearts, he is a very simple and down to earth person.
Azhar :
The more I see him, the more I want to see him.
Harsha bhogle:
if sachin plays well... India sleeps well.
Saurav Ganguly:
The thing I like most about Sachin is his intensity. After being in the
game for so long, he still has the same desire to do well for India in any
international match.I tell you what, this man is a legend.
Kris Srikkanth:
"He is the only match-winning batsman we have"
Ranatunga:
"You get him out and half the battle is won"
Martin Crowe:
A flighted full toss on Leg stump by spinner. any other will play this
shot on leg side by pull shot or glance or flick. but sachin made a space and
played a perfect cover drive for four runs.
Shane Warne:
You have to decide for yourself whether you're bowling well or not.
He's going to hit you for fours and sixes anyway.
Kasprowicz has a superior story. During the Bangalore Test, frustrated,
he went to Dennis Lillee and asked, "Mate, do you see any
weaknesses?" Lillee replied, "No Michael, as long as you walk off with
your pride that's all you can do".
Rudy Kortzen:
"I never get tired during umpiring whenever sachin is on
crease"
sunny gavaskar:
This was after a wonderful century by Sachin (in england i guess in a
test match..not sure) Sunny: The other day i was just trying to think of a
bowler who can go through sachin's defenses when sachin is in total defense. I
am sorry but i could not think of even one name who could do that. If sachin
decides he doesn’t want to give away his wicket, he wont. be it any bowler in
the world. Cheers to Sachin...
Ponting:
Ponting make comparisons btn sachin,Lara& jayasuriya. Sachin is the best ever batsman in the
world. He is brilliant in his technique. He is always hungry for runs.Sachin is
better than Lara in his techniques & thats why he is No.1 among others.On
his day,Lara wiil be more destructive. He is the only man 2 fight for west indies.
Jayasuriya also played gr8 knocks 4 his team. But compared 2 them Sachin is the
BEST
Pradeep Mandhani -a Photographer:
“Barely two hours after landing in Johannesburg on the 1992-93 tour to
South Africa, the team was to visit Tolstoy Farm, Mahatma Gandhi's first
Satyagrahi Commune founded in 1910. It was situated 35 kms from Jo'burg and
most of the Indian players showed little interest, longing to rest in the hotel
after the long flight. But Tendulkar, still a teenager, looked keen and hungry
to learn more about Gandhi. His volley of questions to the guide reflected his
national pride.” NKP Salve, former Union Minister.
Ricky Ponting:
“Sachin is the most complete batsman I have seen. His technique is so
good and he has played well in all conditions. To have 41 one- day
international tons shows what an appetite he has for scoring runs.”
Harsha Bhogle:
There's no better sight on the cricket field than watch Tendulkar bat.
Rev David Shepherd.
"Sachin Tendulkar! If he isn't the best player in the world, I
want to see the best player in the world".
Waqar Younis, former Pakistan fast
bowler.
"He can play that leg glance
with a walking stick also."
British broadcasting corporation
(BBC).
“Beneath the helmet, under that unruly curly hair,
inside the cranium, there is something we don't know, something beyond
scientific measure. Something that allows him to soar, to roam a territory of
sport that, forget us, even those who are gifted enough to play alongside him
cannot even fathom. When he goes out to bat, people switch on their TV sets and
switch off their lives."
Yasir Hameed, former Pakistan
batsman, trying
"Sometimes, you get so
engrossed in watching batsmen like Rahul Dravid and Sachin Tendul kar that you
lose focus on your job." to explain why he dropped a catch off Sachin in a
test at Rawalpindi.
Andrew Symonds, Australian
cricketer, signing a T shirt specially for Sachin.
"To Sachin, the man we all
want to be."
Brian Lara
"Sachin is a genius. I'm a
mere mortal."
Ricky Ponting, Aussie
batsman who once was expected to overhaul Sachin's records.
"The number of innings of his
(Tendulkar's) I have been able to sit back and watch, I think he
is an amazing player. Look at his
stats and records and it's quite incredible for someone to have stayed in the
game for 20 years.. He has set benchmarks for guys like me to chase him and get
as close as we can. If I had to last 20 years, I would probably be batting in a
wheelchair!!"
A banner during a match in Sharjah.
I'll see god when I die but till
then I'll see Sachin.
-A banner in UK.
"Commit all your sins when
Sachin is batting. They will go unnoticed because even the lord is watching!"
Mark Taylor, Australian
captain in 1998 when his team lost Chennai test as Tendulkar scored 155
unbeaten runs in second innings, smashing star spinner Shane Warne all around
Chepauk.
-"We did not lose to a team
called India...we lost to a man called Sachin."
Daniel Vettori, New
Zealand cricketer who began his career as a teenager.
"He has been in form longer
than some of our guys have been alive."
ML Jaisimha, former
India cricketer.
"The more I see of him the
more confused I'm getting to which is his best knock."
Glen McGrath, Aussie
fast bowler who always bowled well against Sachin Tendulkar.
"The joy he brings to the
millions of his countrymen, the grace with which he handles all the adulation
and the expectations and his innate humility - all make for a one-in-a-billion individual".
Shahrukh Khan, Indian
actor, in an interview when asked to name the most important celebrity.
There was a big party where stars
from bollywood and cricketers were invited. Suddenly, there was a big noise,
all wanted to see approaching Amitabh Bachhan. Then Sachin entered the hall and
Amitabh was leading the queue to get a grab of the genius!!
Navjot Singh Sidhu,
"India me aap Prime Minister
ko ek baar Katghare me khada kar sakte hain par Sachin Tendulkar par ungli nahi
utha sakte". (In India, you can sue Prime Minister for once but no one can
contest Sachin Tendulkar).
NKP Salve, former Union Minister when Tendulkar
was accused of ball tempering during a test match in South Africa.
"Sachin cannot cheat. He is to
cricket what (Mahatma) Gandhiji was to politics. It's clear discrimination."
Michael Hussey, Aussie cricketer.
"Test cricket is bloody hard
work, especially when you've got Sachin batting with what looks like a three
metre wide bat."
MS Dhoni, Indian
cricketer who began his career 16 years after Sachin did.
I have joked before that there is a
good chance that I might retire before Tendulkar."
Ray Jennings, Royal
Challengers Bangalore team coach, trying to encourage his team before an IPL
match against Sachin's Mumbai Indians in 2010.
"Sachin Tendulkar is a great
cricketer but he walks and goes to the toilet like all of us."
Harsha Bhogle,
Commentator, describing feeling of Rahul Sharma, an unknown spinner.
"I want to clarify that this
nightmare thing was a joke "He's not going to sleep for a week."
Yuvraj Singh, Sachin's
team mate for over a decade.
We have started calling him
grandfather."
Sourav Ganguly, former
Indian captain.
"To me he will not just be
remembered as a great player and a lovely human being, but as somebody who
tried to learn Bengali for the last 14 years but never managed to do so!"
Martina Navratilova, Tennis
legend, after watching Tendulkar bat at Sydney.
Sachin was so focused. He never
looked like getting out. He was batting with single-minded devotion. It was
truly remarkable. It was a lesson.
