'Tendulkar should consider quitting' by Ian chappel

[Nishant]

Not Sure if this is being discussed elsewhere...but i just read an article about Sachin Tendulkar by Ian Chappel:


"In the fallout from India's early demise at the World Cup one of the major decisions will concern the future of Sachin Tendulkar.

Before anybody else makes a decision on what will happen to Tendulkar the player himself has to have a good long look in the mirror and decide what he's trying to achieve in the game. At the moment he looks like a player trying to eke out a career; build on a glittering array of statistics. If he really is playing for that reason and not to help win as many matches as he can for India then he is wasting his time and should retire immediately.

When you think that for a decade Brian Lara and Tendulkar went head to head in a wonderful battle of stroke play to establish who was the best batsman in the world, they are now worlds apart in effectiveness.

Lara's quick-footed tip toe through a terrific innings against a good Australian bowling attack when the rest of the West Indies top order succumbed easily was in direct contrast to Tendulkar's stumbling effort in the crucial Sri Lanka match. The amazing thing about Lara's brilliant career is the fact that he hasn't changed his style at all over seventeen years. This is a credit to his technique and mental strength, as the aging process generally makes a player more progressively conservative.

Tendulkar hasn't worn as well; his last three or four years have been a shadow of his former self. His double century at the SCG in January 2004 was a classic case of a great player really struggling. He came to the crease out of form and despite amassing all those runs and batting for in excess of ten hours he was no closer to recapturing his best touch than he was when he started out. It was a tribute to his determination but it was a sad sight to see; there are enough average players around that you don't won't to see a class one reduced to that level.

Tendulkar hasn't been as lucky as Lara; the Indian batsman has suffered a lot of injuries in this period where his play has deteriorated and there is nothing that melts your mental approach quicker than physical handicaps. Lara has been relatively free from injury and he certainly doesn't have the weight of numbers riding on his shoulders that Tendulkar does.

However, the population of the Caribbean might be small but they are extremely demanding. Despite all the fuss and the odd controversy that has surrounded Lara's career he has remained himself; this is my game and that is how I play. For whatever reason Tendulkar hasn't been able to maintain his extremely high standards for the last few years and unless he can find a way to recapture this mental approach he's not doing his team or himself any favours.

If Tendulkar had found an honest mirror three years ago and asked the question; "Mirror, mirror on the wall who is the best batsman of all?" It would've answered; "Brian Charles Lara." If he asked that same mirror right now; "Mirror, mirror on the wall should I retire?" The answer would be; "Yes." "

Not sure if u guys would agree with all of this. I agree with the fact that Tendulkar should consider retiring, but some of the points Chappel has made are quite rusty IMO. For example, his point abt Brian Lara being better than sachin over the last few years is incorrect IMO. What has lara done over the last few years, in terms of batting...that sachin has not done?And 3 yrs ago...how was lara the best batsman of them all???

I think sachin needs to look at his role in the indian team ...but not for the reasons ian chappel just gave us! Any opinions?

[Matt79]

Chappelli is never short of an opinion. I think Sachin needs to have a good think about whether he really thinks he can still perform at the level he was accustomed to doing so. If, after HONESTLY thinking about, he thinks he can't, he should pull the plug. He's already achieved more than most could ever dream of in the game and will be remembered as a great - better to go out on roughly your terms, with your legend intact. If on the other hand, he really thinks he can reclaim his form of 5 years ago, who are any of us to tell him that he's wrong?

[silentstriker]

Well not any of us, but the selectors should. I personally give him the England tour to show his form, or he should be out.

[Nishant]

Originally Posted by silentstriker

Well not any of us, but the selectors should. I personally give him the England tour to show his form, or he should be out.

i'd agree with that TBH! It should be his last chance!

[Swervy]

Originally Posted by Nishant

[/I]

Not sure if u guys would agree with all of this. I agree with the fact that Tendulkar should consider retiring, but some of the points Chappel has made are quite rusty IMO. For example, his point abt Brian Lara being better than sachin over the last few years is incorrect IMO. What has lara done over the last few years, in terms of batting...that sachin has not done?And 3 yrs ago...how was lara the best batsman of them all???

I think sachin needs to look at his role in the indian team ...but not for the reasons ian chappel just gave us! Any opinions?

sorry but Lara has produced the goods far more than Tendulkar has over the last few years.

I do think we should see how he plays vs England this summer. The number of runs he gets might not actually be an indicator, its how he makes them, like Chappelli says.

Unfortunately, at the moment, I dont see that he contributes that much to the Indian team, he has turned into a pretty average player, which really is a shame to say

[Sanz]

Quitting is his personal decision and no one should dictate that. But he should not be picked for any future tours until he proves in domestic cricket that he can still bat.

[Nishant]

Originally Posted by Sanz

Quitting is his personal decision and no one should dictate that. But he should not be picked for any future tours until he proves in domestic cricket that he can still bat.

im sure that sachin WILL perform in the domestic games....the pitches will be flat and the bowlers will not be challenging....he will fit centuries with ease but that would not be a good indicator of how good he is. We all know that he can perform on rubbish, batsmen friendly pitches...its abt how he does on more difficult pitches....he might consider coming to england ...but he is this summer....and that should be his chance to show us if he still has it!

[Richard]

Can't believe how many people seem to have missed the fact that, in the Tests in South Africa, Tendulkar looked better than he has for ages.

[jeevan]

Tendulkar is not aging well (uncontroversial, that) and so will not be expected to last until WC2011 (uncontroversial, perhaps that too). So what is the point of hanging around till 2009, holding up a slot and denying someone else a chance at experience? Tests are a different matter, he should continue in those for a while IMHO.

He should certainly play for a little while in ODIs. For e.g. the series in BD has to be an act of redemption from many folks. They should go for a clean sweep with very big margins. Tendulkar has to be given a chance to be a part of that.

[adharcric]

Originally Posted by Richard

Can't believe how many people seem to have missed the fact that, in the Tests in South Africa, Tendulkar looked better than he has for ages.

Apart from that injury-riddled innings, yes. England should still be his final chance though.

[pup11]

Tendulkar is a great player and he doesn't need to prove anything to anyone, but he needs to decide whether his body after playing international cricket for 18 years is still good enough to perform at this level.


His talent and skill are second to none in the history of the game, but to see him scratch around the way he has done recently would evoke criticism. So he needs to decide himself whether he can perform any better now or not.

[Anil]

Originally Posted by Richard

Can't believe how many people seem to have missed the fact that, in the Tests in South Africa, Tendulkar looked better than he has for ages.

you are also missing the fact that although he looked in reasonable touch, he did not look remotely vintage tendulkar; he also did not really utilize being in touch and go on to play a long innings in the team cause...

[pup11]

Then there are hardly any milestones or records (for a batsman) in International cricket that he doesn't hold, so there not much left for him to achieve his dream was to be a part of a WC winning team which hasn't happened yet and i can't see him playing till 2011 WC.


So the retirement's decision is upto Tendulkar, if he still feels he has got something to offer then he should stay, otherwise he shouldn't ridicule himself like this.

[Anil]

Originally Posted by pup11

So the retirement's decision is upto Tendulkar, if he still feels he has got something to offer then he should stay, otherwise he shouldn't ridicule himself like this.

someone's retirement would always be upto them but their place in the team would be upto the team management and selectors and it should be based on merit and no one should be considered "undroppable" no matter how great they have been in the past....

[adharcric]

Originally Posted by Anil

you are also missing the fact that although he looked in reasonable touch, he did not look remotely vintage tendulkar; he also did not really utilize being in touch and go on to play a long innings in the team cause...

That's why England is still his last chance. The fact that he looked in reasonable touch after a long time is enough to give him a final chance to score big runs (in England).