Sachin: Champ or Choker?

The statistics seem to speak for themselves. It’s best to watch Tendulkar when he’s batting in the first innings. Little pressure, the sun on his back, he hits them and they stay hit. Then the cookie starts to crumble. And in the fourth innings, when India are chasing runs, when the heat is on, stay out of the kitchen; you’re not likely to see the Little Master on fire.

It’s an age-old malady but, like with all our holy cows, one few want to talk about. But there have been stray voices speaking out. Last year, after another Tendulkar let-down, the original Little Master delivered perhaps the most severe indictment yet. Steve Waugh, Sunil Gavaskar said, was a better Test batsman for his ability to deliver in tight situations.

‘‘When batsmen who are set, have done all the hard work, throw their wickets away to loose shots, then the team is never going to put enough runs on the board. Why blame Laxman when the best batsman in the universe gets a half-century and then gets out when a big score from him is the crying need of the team’’, Gavaskar wrote. This holds true for almost every Test-match occasion when his team needs his runs. The most common reason trotted out by experts — former cricketers — is the almost-inhuman pressure on a man regarded by cricket fans as a demi-god. He cannot, to paraphrase, consider the possibility of defeat; for the sake of his fans, teammates, sponsors, he simply has to succeed.

But other sportsmen — the best of their generation — look pressure square in the eye and move ahead. Schumacher, Jordan, Beckham, Sampras; put them on the grill, they’ll give you a roasting. Sachin? He’s toast.

You can see it on his face when he walks out to bat; the carefree, boyish confidence of a few years ago has been replaced by a hunted, haunted look. It’s most obvious on foreign soil, where only twice has he scored centuries to take India to victory.

There’s more to it than that, of course. There’s a problem with his technique, too. Ask Anshuman Gaekwad, who was his — and India’s — coach in the mid-90s. ‘‘There’s a change in Sachin’s batting lately. His footwork is suspect, his batting style is more cramped today. He is playing half-cock and is trying to reach for the ball rather than wait for it. The smooth flow and sweet timing that were his hallmark are missing today. Today his bottom hand comes more in play and this adds to the risk’’, Gaekwad says.

He disagrees with people who say there’s nothing wrong, since he’s still scoring runs. ‘‘Just the watch his old videos and one can see the obvious difference there. Since Sachin is a great player he’s still scoring but his domineering style is missing.’’

Too much of one-day cricket? Yes, says Nari Contractor. ‘‘He’s been getting out to the incoming deliveries more frequently than before. He has to take care of that. Obviously, some shots that he plays in one-dayers have crept into Tests too.’’ Sunil Valson agrees, and points to Sachin’s tendency to fall into bowling traps laid by bowlers — Ashley Giles, Ray Price, Andrew Flintoff and Simon Jones — to curb his run-flow by bowling on the leg side. ‘‘They are trying to test his patience. He should just stay in there, wait for the loose deliveries’’, he says.

Suddenly, from a state of denial, the problems with his technique come pouring out. His coach from schooldays Ramakant Achrekar believes he’s in a hurry at times, ‘‘he needs to be patient and play a big innings.’’

He’s not being selective with his shots, feels Yashpal Sharma. Navjot Sidhu says he’s ‘‘playing a bit away from his body’’. And Atul Wassan complains about his ‘‘trying to play some unbelievable shots and getting out’’. Despite all this, the runs keep coming. And help rebuild that shattered illusion in our minds.

(Reported by Sandeep Dwivedi, S Santhanam, Jaideep Marar)