Michael Clarke says one of his greatest cricketing possessions is a pair of gloves signed by Sachin and presented to him during his debut tour of India in 2004. In an interview to The Times Of India, Clarke says that when a great like Sachin retires the game is poorer for it. “He is surely the greatest batsman of our generation and the greatest batsman that I have seen or played against. May be he is only second to Sir Donald Bradman in history. When such a player decides to call it a day an entire legion of fans feels the pain,” says Clarke.
“He is the most complete batsman that I have seen. His ability to defend is as good as his ability to attack and he is equally at ease against all kinds of bowling. More importantly, his longevity is what sets him apart in comparison to everyone else. He is adored all over Australia. Sachin has played some of his greatest cricket in Australia and is perhaps the only cricketer of our generation who gets a standing ovation at every Australian cricket ground. He is the perfect ambassador of our game and the Australian public has appreciated what he has done for the sport in India and more globally,” said Clarke.
According to a report in The Hindu, Anil Kumble said that he had the honour of starting his career literally alongside him, and it seemed he has seen about 100-150 players retire before him. “It’s a testament to his longevity, skill and ability to perform and live up not just to his own expectations but to that of millions of others. He has influenced cricketers over the last 20 years to take up the game and he has touched the hearts of millions of fans not just in India but around the world,” said Kumble.
Meanwhile Rahul Dravid said, “We can almost imagine a one-day team which has been playing without him for a while, but imagine a Test team without S.R. Tendulkar on the team list! It was virtually given that he would be around and I guess we all wished he would go on forever. But that’s life. It’s a moment to actually celebrate that someone could achieve so much excellence and maintain that standard for 24 years.”
