A Genius at Work
Yesterday, I enjoyed the rare, and very special, privilege of watching a genius at work from very close quarters.
As a student of the game, I visited The County Ground, Taunton, home of Somerset County Cricket Club, to observe Sachin Tendulkar, the world’s best batsman, prepare for the England Test and ODI Series against India.
His first priority will be to spend some time in ‘the middle’ against Somerset from Friday onwards, before heading to Lord’s for the 2,00th ever Test match, and the opportunity to add to his 99 international centuries.
A century will mean his name can be inscribed on the Lord’s Honours Boards for the first time. Remarkably, Sachin, along with Brian Lara and Shane Warne, have been unable to score a century (for batsmen) or take 5 wickets in an innings or 10 in the match (bowlers) in a Test at ‘The Home of Cricket’.
The cricket world will be willing him to do so, but in reality, it is just another distraction for the genius from Mumbai.
He will know that he must treat it just like another Test, and set about his work with the usual surgeon-like precision that has characterised the 99 other centuries he has made for India. He will know that his job is to put his team into a strong position to dominate the match, and simultaneously establish a lead in the series, before England can assert any dominance themselves.
As importantly as his exemplary standards of play, Sachin has been a wonderful role model off the field too. He has ‘modelled’ a humility, and lack of ego, present in the very best of people. He has maintained a remarkable balance in the face of what must have been significant temptation to over-indulge himself on the opportunities life presents when one is phenomenally successful. Quite simply, he is the best.
Watching him yesterday, highlighted to me what sets the best apart from the rest: a love for their activity.
Sachin loves batting – it is not ‘work’ for him, much as Roger Federer seems to be ‘in love’ with the feeling of stroking the tennis ball off the strings of his racket. It is an energy which transcends all others. The love for the activity means that the desire to compete over a lonfg period of time in a professional career remains a more likely constant.
In an interview published in ‘The Daily Telegraph’ two days ago, he revealed some of his current thinking (12.07.11):
“I’m not thinking of records,” he says, ever so quietly. “I’m just thinking of enjoying this tour. The secret to any performance is not in chasing records. I think about, ‘What is the best way to enjoy the game, and how can I enhance that enjoyment factor?’
“If I enhance the enjoyment then, naturally, the standard of play becomes higher. To me, that is more important. If I’m playing well, things can happen. I don’t need to go around chasing them. It’s a process. You construct a solid foundation and build on it.”
Gary Kirsten made a big impact on Indian Cricket during his three year stint as India Coach, and worked very closely with Sachin, ‘The Little Master’.
Yesterday, he was working with India’s new Coach Duncan Fletcher for the first time, having missed India’s Tour to West Indies over the past six weeks. Fletcher is one of the most astute observers of a batsman’s technique, and I imagine will add some ‘newness’ to Sachin’s encyclopedic knowledge of his own game. It could make for a fascinating relationship, and enable Sachin’s thinking, and play, to be stimulated further.
Watching the quality of Sachin’s balance aided by his very still head position, highlighted for me why he is so proficient at scoring all around the wicket. Like all great players, the time he creates for himself to play his strokes is enhanced by the fact that he is not making last-second adjustments because he has had the confidence to delay his movement into the stroke until the very last moment, taking time to be as certain as possible, exactly where the ball is, and what stroke he is going to play before committing himself to it. Watchfulness and judiciuosness are the hallmarks of the best batsmen. Sachin watched the ball like a hawk yesterday.
From a technical perspective, I have always been amazed at how low he grips the bat with his bottom hand -so much so that it is almost gripping the blade rather than the handle. It highlights the various ways of doing things well. Others, such as the great English batsman Tom Graveney, held the bat at the top of the handle, as did Australian legend Adam Gilchrist. WG Grace held the bat with his hands far apart, at each end of the bat handle.
My special experience yesterday gave me another opportunity (from only ten yards away) to watch closley (without having to concentrate on the ball like I did when I kept wicket behind him earlier in his career), and observe all his idiosyncracies and technical qualities.
After a lay-off from competition following India’s ICC World Cup win and the IPL, ‘The Little Master’ is looking to work his way back into form. Synchronising the body-motion again, ball after ball, to develop the all-important rhythm that top batsmen seek, and getting the wiring in the brain to work most effectively, so that the thinking is clear, and able to manage the variety of emotions which affect a batsman’s equilibrium at the crease is the challenge.
Developing good form takes time, even if the right-hand column says a batsman is in form because he has made some runs, doesn’t necessarily mean he fells ‘in form’. However, when it all comes together, and the batsman feels in ‘great nick’, the confidence oozes out of them as their game expands from one innings to another, as they produce a series of performances which impact significantly on a season.
If no time is spent in ‘the middle’, no amount of net practice can replicate the match-tough conditions, where one mistake can prove deathly. I am sure he would love to make a big score against Somerset this weekend, but if he does, I fear England may be on the receiving end of his wide bat for the rest of the summer.
As a cricket-lover, I hope we can see the best, from the best, as the summer unfolds.
