The greatest ... could have been greater

Kapil Dev has no doubts about Sachin Tendulkar's performances. He knows Tendulkar's record over 20 years is impeccable. But he still feels he is an under-achiever. Read what Kapil has to say in his column for the Asian Age.

When I say all this I mean it as a compliment to his talent and a criticism of his under achievement. I firmly believe that for a batsman of Sachin's talent, he should have made 10 Test double hundreds, a 300 and at least one 400. In the same breath, I would say that I would ideally have liked to see him go from 30 to 50 in three overs and to go from 50 to 80 on any pitch, against any bowling in 5 overs. He may use up another 5 overs to get to 95 and then safely get his century. Here is a man who can hit sixes at ease than anyone else in world cricket but after 50, he usually takes 5 overs to get to 55.

In DNA, Ayaz Memon writes that had it not been for Tendulkar, the match-fixing controversy could have debilitated the game in the Indian subcontinent. It was primarily because of his personal and professional credibility that Indian cricket could emerge from that crisis relatively unaffected.

In the Hindustan Times, Pradeep Magazine says preserving Test cricket would be a real tribute to Tendulkar.

The same paper also carries an image montage of Tendulkar as well as snippets from Navjot Singh Sidhu and Atul Ranade, a very close friend of the man himself.

The Wanderers on December 13, 1992, is vivid for writes Vijay Lokapally. The one-day match over, the Indian team, soundly beaten, was limping back. From the comfort of the press box one saw Tendulkar take off suddenly, chasing a burly South African supporter. That night he would have outpaced the fastest man on earth. He closed in on the prankster and brought him down in a flash. Read more in the Hindu.

Nirmal Shekar believes it is impossible to outgrow Indian sport’s most celebrated boy wonder.

Outlook's Rohit Mahajan says the media, as always and like everyone, wants a piece of him, and Tendulkar knows it's part of the deal, goes through the inquisition with immeasurable patience, trying to ensure that everyone's happy.