By Sreelata S. Yellamrazu
As India embark on one of their strongest World Cup campaigns yet, while the euphoria surrounding Sachin Tendulkar is more about sentiment, the base of that strength in the team stems from none other than the team captain.
There is no taking away Sachin Tendulkar’s role in the team. As the most accomplished batsman and an extraordinary role model, the influence Tendulkar has on the younger members on the team is quite visible in the manner in which they do not mind getting carried away with the idea that the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011 is not about team India but about Sachin Tendulkar.
Tendulkar’s presence in any squad automatically changes the balance, tilting it in their favour while forcing the opposition to put their mind into plotting his downfall and weakening the team. In that the role Tendulkar has been performing has been difficult to estimate on the degree of difficulty because only the man carrying the burden will know of its weight.
However, if there is a reason why Tendulkar is more relaxed these days and relishing his cricket at a time when sportspersons are expected to trudge instead of run, one of the factors for that has to be Mahendra Singh Dhoni. Tendulkar has not always enjoyed falling back on a strong, talented and rather determined team and in that, Dhoni shares a part of the credit for that aura and that quality.
Dhoni showed in the warm up against New Zealand that he could really turn it on and revert to the Dhoni of yore if he so wished, turning the night into a nightmare for New Zealand as he blazed on without a care that that century would not reflect in the record books and therefore, deny those not privileged to see the game to plausibly miss out on the innings altogether.
However, Dhoni does not only bring his batting to the fore. Dhoni the wickettaker was overshadowed by Dhoni, the explosive batsman. And it was not long before Dhoni, the batsman, has been replaced by the dynamism and leadership qualities that have singled out Dhoni from the rest of the Indian cricket team. It would be fair in that sense to believe that the teams competing against team India have as much to worry about Dhoni, having watched him closely during the IPL for one, as they do about Sachin Tendulkar.
If Tendulkar is a one man army, Dhoni is the army commander and under him, one can expected honesty, the will to win against all odds and the never say die attitude. But more importantly, Dhoni exudes the kind of confidence that suggests he enjoys what he does, and inculcating the same, it appears team India thrives on pressure and thrills at the expense of a beleaguered opposition. If India can do, there will be two heroes, not one that will be crowned at the end of the competition.
As India embark on one of their strongest World Cup campaigns yet, while the euphoria surrounding Sachin Tendulkar is more about sentiment, the base of that strength in the team stems from none other than the team captain.
There is no taking away Sachin Tendulkar’s role in the team. As the most accomplished batsman and an extraordinary role model, the influence Tendulkar has on the younger members on the team is quite visible in the manner in which they do not mind getting carried away with the idea that the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011 is not about team India but about Sachin Tendulkar.
Tendulkar’s presence in any squad automatically changes the balance, tilting it in their favour while forcing the opposition to put their mind into plotting his downfall and weakening the team. In that the role Tendulkar has been performing has been difficult to estimate on the degree of difficulty because only the man carrying the burden will know of its weight.
However, if there is a reason why Tendulkar is more relaxed these days and relishing his cricket at a time when sportspersons are expected to trudge instead of run, one of the factors for that has to be Mahendra Singh Dhoni. Tendulkar has not always enjoyed falling back on a strong, talented and rather determined team and in that, Dhoni shares a part of the credit for that aura and that quality.
Dhoni showed in the warm up against New Zealand that he could really turn it on and revert to the Dhoni of yore if he so wished, turning the night into a nightmare for New Zealand as he blazed on without a care that that century would not reflect in the record books and therefore, deny those not privileged to see the game to plausibly miss out on the innings altogether.
However, Dhoni does not only bring his batting to the fore. Dhoni the wickettaker was overshadowed by Dhoni, the explosive batsman. And it was not long before Dhoni, the batsman, has been replaced by the dynamism and leadership qualities that have singled out Dhoni from the rest of the Indian cricket team. It would be fair in that sense to believe that the teams competing against team India have as much to worry about Dhoni, having watched him closely during the IPL for one, as they do about Sachin Tendulkar.
If Tendulkar is a one man army, Dhoni is the army commander and under him, one can expected honesty, the will to win against all odds and the never say die attitude. But more importantly, Dhoni exudes the kind of confidence that suggests he enjoys what he does, and inculcating the same, it appears team India thrives on pressure and thrills at the expense of a beleaguered opposition. If India can do, there will be two heroes, not one that will be crowned at the end of the competition.
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