The Surfer

His emotions ride very close to the surface - and his phrasing would surely set any psychologist's alarm bells ringing. He keeps talking about guilt, about a lack of worthiness, about his failure to contribute. He sets such feelings in the past as the reason he had to quit the tour when he felt he had nothing left to give; but their constant reiteration places them firmly in the present. The image he presents is of a man in the grip of an obsession with success, who cannot cope with failure. It is this which drove him to such relentless batting practice that he could not take a break; it is this which filled his mind with cricket and nothing else; it is this which in the end found him sitting alone at breakfast, cap over his face, because he could not face his team-mates and keep his emotions in check.

Sedition is an act against the security of the country. How does clapping for Pakistan threaten security or even the interests of the Indian nation state? When did patriotism insist on uniforms or uniformity? Are those students a potential fifth column or terrorists because of their cheering for Pakistan? One has to say something about the spirit of cricket and the spirit of democracy. The nation-state stands between them and in a deep way is sandwiched by these fertile imaginations

He played pranks on teammates, confessed to being overconfident (or could this be a gentler term for arrogance?), had pangs of anxiety, even lost sleep when not scoring well, and wasn't averse to using the F-word to tell off opponents on the pitch. Finally, we see Tendulkar who doesn't look unflappable like a kung-fu fighting panda who has found inner peace.

Rahul Dravid, the man who has seen him bat the most at international level, pulls off an excellent recollection; Sanjay Manjrekar recollects Tendulkar's attitude towards duels; Sourav Ganguly makes you smile with a fresh collection of anecdotes (who would have thunk that a livid Tendulkar had almost sent back Ganguly mid-tour once?), narrating them in a style that characterises the top-notch commentator that he is; VVS Laxman is honest in his gratitude; Yuvraj Singh sounds like the quintessential favourite student in a Professor's farewell; and John Wright remembers a protégé-turned-friend.

The new Yuvraj stands almost still, till the bowler has released the ball. He moves only when the ball is in the air. The trigger movement is just enough to break his inertia. He is now less committed and the footwork is less fixed and more flexible.

With all the cricketers I see now, they are not so talented, not as great as the players before them. I don't see us getting back to those glory days. I am not saying we will not be number one again, but we will not see the kind of players we had before ... I wish to see West Indies cricket get better. I believe that when West Indies cricket is strong, it is good for world cricket. I just hope and pray that we get the right nucleus of players to take our cricket back to the top. It requires hardwork. We will have to make some changes to this team and start to blood some younger players so that in a few years' time we are able to compete with the best teams.

Australians love to feel pride in their national cricket team. But not everyone is looking for a South African workmate to roast on Thursday. Certainly there are those who feel immense thrill and admiration after the team's win in Cape Town on Wednesday, which sealed a gripping 2-1 series win. Captain Michael Clarke's heroic century in the face of Morne Morkel's pace and bounce was perhaps the best of his career, David Warner's explosive tons in each innings confirm him as the world's form batsman and Mitchell Johnson's seven-wicket match haul was the cherry on top of an extraordinary summer.

But - and this happens far too often - judging by commentary on websites and blogs across the country, a chunk of people too large to ignore feels disappointed by the team's behaviour. Many feel unrepresented by Clarke's men, just as they did at times when Ricky Ponting and Steve Waugh led the side. And, they're sad about it because, if there is one sporting team above others that Australians want to have speaking on their behalf - representing their better qualities - it's the national cricket team.

The eight Tests of summer displayed Test cricket in all its moods and humours and Sybil-esque personalities, except nailbiting. Australia's seven wins all were by wide margins, and so was its single defeat. Only in Cape Town did the game's third dimension, time, become a factor, excruciatingly, deliciously.

I can't help myself though. I choose the moment when he finishes a phone call to go on over there and thank the man. I'm searching for an in - not "I'm the T-shirt guy." I mutter something about how I play soccer with Bouch at Bob's place (interpret: I'm not a crazy fan - yes I am), and how I just want to thank him for all that he's done for South African cricket. And then I just break down. I start bawling my eyes out, right there in front of him and his wife. I can't help myself, and it is pathetic to see. Blind one, as we used to say back in the 90s. I'm trying to tell him how I was with him when he came out to bat with a broken hand, how I also followed those angling sliders from Zaheer Khan that got him time and again...

He never spent the money and didn't even carry out the spot-fix correctly, but the stark fact is he took £6,000 to deliberately bowl badly. It was a decision which eventually left him in one of Europe's most secure prisons. At Belmarsh, he learned how to live alongside murderers and exist on 10 minutes of outdoor activity a day. "Whatever punishment they gave to me, I had to take it," he said. "I did wrong and got punished for it. I've just got to accept it.''