Bad news for all the die-hard Sachin fans who indefatigably love to watch him play in the park. However, he has been rested as per BCCI keeping the upcoming Aussie tour in mind. Tis surprising how much zing is attached still to any test format. That ratifies the holiness of this format. Despite cricketing legends lamenting the loss of sheen in Indo-Pak rivalry,(more so because of Pakistan cricketing side being a depleted one now), Indo-Aussie rivalry still enthuses a few cricket fans. You need quality bowling attack to challenge Sachin, Dhoni or any other veteran batter. Kumble might just gradually give way to Dhoni for the test captaincy but 'Jumbo'will always be remembered for his amazing consistency all these years. I saw his 8-wicket haul againt Australia in an inning in a test series in Jan, 2004. The match also saw India crossing 700 plus runs with Sachin top-scoring with 241* runs in the first innings and 60* in the second one. However, 'Jumbo' has been magical many times, especially in Kotla, Delhi, where he took all the ten wickets in an inning, if I am getting it correctly. Then again not being given captaincy in the lengthier format has perhaps eased off things for Dhoni as of now who seems to a cool customer in the faster formats. Ponting has a point to set the records straight this series and erase all doubts regarding his shoddy performance in India and he has the calibre to achieve any milestone. Forget his 12 plus average in test cricket on the Indian soil. He can be a masterclass act anyday. He is more restrained in his speech these days and Clarke, the new face of the future Aussie leadership brigade has cautioned the Aussie batsmen to be wary of Indian spinners. Similarly, Kapil has cautioned India against complacency. Gilchrist and Sachin have called any Indo-Aussie series as 'iconic'. We cricket lovers are eagerly awaiting the start of the series in October and let us hope that Sachin will get the 77 plus runs need to become the highest run-getter even in the Test cricket. Even if he does not, he will remain the best after calling it quits. I am sure Lara, another legend, will not rest in peace if it happens very soon. Another legend Viv Richards was able to grab 30 odd man of the match awards in almost half the matches vis-vis other greats. Sachin has been over 50 plus times the man of the match recipient. Ganguly is not very far behind either in that. But time has come for him perhaps to quit gracefully and remain in good memories in the minds of all the cricket fans and not just the bengali cricket fans. He has contributed a lot to India and pioneered the now famous 'aggro' quotient in the team.
In the end, let us hope again that Sachin will bounce back again and critics will not make him a punching bag again for any normal 'human' failure. Border-Gavaskar series, please get started ASAP!
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