Sachin Tendulkar is special. And he will remain that way. Forever. Not just for the runs he has scored and the games he has won, but for the sense of pride he has instilled in an entire nation, allowing us all to believe that we can take on the world—and win. And for the sheer joy he has provided to the world at large with his masterly batting. There is no doubt about the fact that long after he has hung up his boots, he will still be spoken of as a genius, a rare talent, a superstar who lit up our galaxy.
So what made Sachin so special? Was this a case of exceptional innate talent? Those eyes that seemed to pick up a ball just a bit quicker than everyone else, those wrists that seemed to be able to turn a cricket bat into a magic wand, and the footwork that allowed him to dance down to the pitch of a ball with ballerina-like perfection—were all those just God-given gifts, lovingly bestowed on the chosen one?
Or was it his attitude? His fighting spirit and mental strength were best epitomized that day in Sialkot when, in a Test match India was fighting to save, he got hit on the nose by a bouncer from Waqar Younis. And when the non-striker, Navjyot Singh Sidhu, and the team physio advised that he retire hurt, Tendulkar dismissed their suggestion with those magical words: ‘Main khelega!’ ‘I’ll play,’ he said. Nay, he said, ‘I’ll fight!’ Two words that defined the genius of the man!
But there’s something else that might actually reveal the secret of Tendulkar’s greatness. Something that goes beyond talent and attitude. Gary Kirsten, the former India team coach, spoke about it. And it’s something we could all learn and benefit from.
Towards the end of Kirsten’s stint as India coach, Cricinfo spoke to him about all things cricket. And of course when the discussion veered to Tendulkar and what made him special, here’s what Kirsten had to say: ‘Tendulkar studies the whole book for the exam! He does not leave anything to chance. He will never finish a net session till he has made sure he has done everything that he feels is required to get ready for the next match. Sometimes it means facing three hundred balls in the nets, sometimes fifteen hundred balls!’
Wow! Think about it. After twenty-five years of top-class cricket, he still studies the whole book for the exam! If he scored a hundred in a Test match, he’d probably end up facing from a hundred and fifty to two hundred balls. And yet, in practice, he could end up facing fifteen hundred balls. How many of us do that in our lives?
Several talented folks with a solid track record behind them begin to think that they can wing it past any challenge, that they don’t need to prepare any more. And that sets them up for failure. Most of us grow up looking for shortcuts. What’s the least effort we need to put in to get by?
But as Tendulkar showed, the truly great guys ask a different set of questions of themselves: ‘What more can I do to succeed? Have I done all I can to take care of any eventuality?’ Their results are driven by hard work. And not just talent or attitude. By sweat, tears and toil. Not just God-gifted talents or luck.
As we’ve seen before, success happens when preparation meets opportunity. The opportunity comes to us all. The question is, how prepared are we when opportunity comes knocking? Take a leaf from Tendulkar’s book. Sweat it out. Prepare. Never mind how successful you are, remember, every dawn brings a new day.
We may not all have Tendulkar’s talents. Or his mental strength. But we can all have his work ethic. Slog, remember to study the whole book for the exam.
Tendulkar studies the whole book for the exam! Do you?