Who doesn’t know about Sachin Tendulkar? The man is a global phenomenon, a demi-god in his own country. He is not just an ex-cricketer; he is the heartbeat of an entire nation. Although sports fans of sportspersons today are much more connected to their heroes by social media, there are facts they still arnt aware of. This infographic on facts about Sachin Tendulkar from cricket.deepthi.com brings forth a summary of Sachin Tendulkar’s entire life. There are certain tit bits and anecdotes in the graphic which some of his craziest fans may not be well versed with. For instance, his father named him after SD Burman (Sachin Dev Burman), a legendary music director in India.
Sachin Tendulkar is well known for being a thorough perfectionist who gives his 100% always. He is also extremely religious and a devout, god fearing Hindu. This is what has made his appeal so far reaching and widespread across India and the world. He appeals to almost three generations of Indians, starting the game off as a 16 year old and playing it with distinction for 24 years. This strive to be perfect has helped him achieve all the success in cricket. He is very disciplined, and has certain set routines, which he would follow regularly. For example, the infographic speaks about his habit of wearing his left thigh pad first, and keeping an India tricolour in his bag always. Always the humble human being, not many people know that Sachin turned up for a match for his college, Kirti College straight after a grueling 4 month 1992 tour of Australia. This respectful and honest approach has been instrumental in making him the best ambassador for the sport.
The world (as we know it) has been lamenting about how the ‘sun has set on Indian cricket’ and ‘cricket’s greatest loss’, ever since the great
Sachin Tendulkar announced his retirement, right up to (and long after) his last game. This was a momentous occasion for every Indian out there, who grew up watching the master blaster smash his sixes and win many a match for his home country.
So what do we have to say that’s different? The media has been full of interviews, columns and even some eulogies about the great Sachin. The infographic from cricket.deepthi.com gives us a very different insight into Sachin Tendulkar’s life.
Fun facts, details and anecdotes about his life from this infographic, make Sachin someone everyone can relate to, and identify with.For instance, did you know that his father named him after the music director Sachin Dev Burman? Or that he started out wanting to be a fast bowler? Or that he used to go fishing for tadpoles and guppy fish in a stream near his house and even asked his mother to look up a recipe for an Indian preparation with frogs or frog bajji?
These juicy details about Sachin’s childhood make him seem like that naughty boy we’ve all known growing up- the bully in the gang, who was always up for some fun. In fact, according to his first captain, Sunil Harshe, whenever Sachin was introduced to someone, his first reaction was to ask, “Will I be able to beat him?”
In terms of design, the infographic does not have much visual appeal, as there are only a few pictures of Sachin accompanied by thirty-five facts about his life and career.
The child in Sachin is revealed, in cute details like the fact that when he fell off a tree, watching television, his older brother and mentor, Ajit, enrolled him in cricket coaching classes as a punishment. He also used to have regular ‘who can eat more vada pavs’ competitions with his cricket buddies Vinod Kambli and Salil Ankola. Like every good India, Sachin loves his chai-biskoot: according to the infographic, he enjoys dunking glucose biscuits into his cup of tea. He even once put a hosepipe in Saurav Ganguly’s room and left the water on! Ganguly later woke up to find all his gear floating! Tendulkar and Ganguly share a very special relationship, Ganguly is referred to as Babu Moshai by the great skipper.
We are also privy to some private information via this infographic. Did you know that Sachin visits the Siddhivinayak Temple in Prabhadevi, Mumbai in the wee hours of the morning? Or that he refused to shoot a commercial that portrayed him hitting balls with a fly swatter? Sachin refused to take such a shot and told filmmaker Prahlad Kakkar that a shot like that would send out a very different image and would make him ‘bigger than the game’. Many die-hard fans would argue that Sachin is bigger than the game, and that the game was always about Sachin.
But as the saying goes, the show must go on!