The world around Sachin Tendulkar

As tribute to a remarkable career spanning over two decades of excellence, Star Sports looks back at Sachin Tendulkar's impressive milestones over the years, as well as the changes the world around him underwent as he climbed through the ranks to become one of the greatest batsmen of all time.

Suresh Menon, writing for Outlook India, while not disputing Tendulkar's talent and laurels, believes that the batsman was, for the large part of his career, immune to criticism and bad press because of his legion of fanatical supporters who revere him.

To my mind, he is the greatest all-round batsman the game has produced. Tendulkar set high standards in his bats­manship as well as in personal behaviour. Yet, res­ponses to his acts of omission and commission--ball-tampering in South Africa, the criticism of his captain declaring when Sachin was on 194, the att­empts to get tax relief on his Ferrari--were always tinged with tolerance, even humour. He had the benefit of clergy. Perhaps writers were wary of being banished from the charmed circle.

Writing for the Hindu, Zaheer Khan reveals how Tendulkar's immaculate reading of the game once helped the bowler during a tour of England.

I remember bowling to Michael Vaughan in England. I was bowling over the wicket and Sachin suggested I go round the wicket. Sachin had studied how Vaughan was playing the line and realised he was letting the ball go because it was on the right side of his eye. He wanted me to change the line so that Vaughan feels every ball was coming in. Actually, that is why I started bowling more round the wicket in England. Through my discussions with him I realised how he could understand the angle and all, even better than the bowlers.

In the Indian Express, Cheteshwar Pujara believes that the mere presence of Tendulkar at the other end of the crease helped him lift his own game.

You can learn so much from Sachin when he is batting with you in the middle and by watching him prepare. It is up to individuals to learn as much as you can from Sachin. I tried to inculcate his work ethic, his passion, his hunger for runs and his dedication to the game. He is 40 but there has not been a single day when he has not given it his all, be it in the nets or during a match. He is inspiration to all of us and he has proven that if you are passionate about the game and work hard, then age is just a number.

In an interview with G Krishnan for Daily News and Analysis, Jatin Paranjpe, the former Indian batsman who played in four ODIs and more famously pipped Tendulkar to the Bombay Cricket Association's Junior Cricketer of the Year award in 1986-87, speaks about his friendship with him.

"It was a big honour for me to receive the Best Junior Cricketer award from Bombay Cricket Association as I came from a non-cricketing school like Don Bosco," Paranjape told dna, admitting that he was not aware of that letter Gavaskar wrote to Tendulkar. Paranjape, one year and a week older to Tendulkar, said he has been a big fan of the young sensation. Of his first memories of Tendulkar, the 41-year-old said: "Sachin loved the game, loved batting, loved bowling, loved fielding. He's a lovely guy, a big team man and very proud of the Mumbai cap even at that age, He always helped his teammates."