What's it like being Sachin

I got hold of Greg Chappell's autobiography, Fierce Focus, the other day. I skipped straight to the chapter that interested me the most - "Sourav and I". Ganguly-Chappell is easily the most talked about player-coach relationship in the game, so the chapter was an engrossing read and Chappell's account was frank and to the point. However, when I finished the chapter, one paragraph, no, one line, kept ringing in my head. It was a comment made by Sachin Tendulkar (marked below). 



Friends. He can probably count them on one hand. They say it's always lonely and cold on the top...how true! It's a curse of being the elite of the elitist. On one hand, he has a billion people who adore him; some name their kid after him; few even tattoo his autograph; he's the best in his field of work and probably has enough moolah for another 99 lifetime, but in reality what the man may actually yearn for is a normal life and a few more true friends.

Sigh. Such is life!


Aside:

I hope he gets that 100x100 monkey off his back in tomorrow's test at Bradman's hometown. He scored a ton last time India played a test at Adelaide. How fitting would it be if he does it again!

Go Sachin! :)

Alone in the cauldron. I took this pic when Sachin walked out to a standing ovation at the MCG on Day 2, Boxing Day Test 2011

Hope and Loneliness

I read this today:

Loneliness is the human condition. Cultivate it. The way it tunnels into you allows your soul room to grow. Never expect to outgrow loneliness. Never hope to find people who will understand you, someone to fill that space. An intelligent, sensitive person is the exception, the very great exception. If you expect to find people who will understand you, you will grow murderous with disappointment. The best you’ll ever do is to understand yourself, know what it is that you want, and not let the cattle stand in your way.

Janet Fitch

I have conflicting thoughts on the sentence "Never hope to find people who will understand you, someone to fill that space". Yes, it is very hard to find such person - someone who is in sync with you. Even good, close friends, don't necessarily understand you. They may just accept you. It's just that we can not afford to lose hope in finding that person. Hope can drive you crazy. But, in Andy Dufresne's words "Hope is a good thing, may be the best of things, no good thing ever dies".

I strongly agree with the last sentence "The best you’ll ever do is to understand yourself...". It echoes my views in the last para of this post.