In Tendulkar Country: A marvelous write-up by Wright Thomson on ESPN

**Zunaid** · #1 April 6, 2011, 11:12 PM

http://www.espncricinfo.com/magazine...ml?CMP=OTC-RSS

In Tendulkar country

An American writer new to cricket experiences the first couple of weeks of the World Cup, navigating the madness of a billion fans and chasing the soul of the game

Wright Thompson
April 7, 2011

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Blanket coverage: nowhere in India can you escape ads featuring Tendulkar © Associated Press

DHAKA, Bangladesh - The guy walking across the parking lot is famous. That's easy to tell from the reactions. Crowds part for him. Security guards mirror his every step. Other cricketers who made this same trip to the locker room tiptoed around the puddles. He strides over them, head up, confident. I am following an Indian cricket superstar, but I don't know who he is. That's the kind of trip this is going to be - one of constant confusion and mystery.

He's not a big man, but he's got a big aura. Fans climb the stadium wall, cheek to cheek, pressed against openings to catch a glimpse. The player looks up at the apartment buildings crowding the other side of the street, like a zoo animal in reverse, all the residents leaning over to get a peek. He waves his bat at the kids on the wall. The kids scream with joy. I grab a photographer and point.

Who is that?

He looks at me like I've got three heads.

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al Furqaan · #2 April 6, 2011, 11:37 PM

a very good read by a guy from my neck of the woods.

Dilscoop · #3 April 7, 2011, 02:32 PM

http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/etick...110329/Cricket

Here is the original link. Read through the comments... good stuff. Few haters, many new fans, but all in all, they are all interested. Good for cricket. It's GROWING!

Can't wait till it messes up NHL and GayMLA.

Spread the link around http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/etick...110329/Cricket

yashsaxena · #4 April 12, 2011, 02:05 AM

Very nice work and good efforts . . . .

Really, Sachin is the god . . .

prtikul · #5 February 12, 2013, 09:44 AM

It was a great article on Tendulkar, We can argue whether he was on par with great players like Don, Vivian Richards or on contrary He was below par as a test player as compared to players of his own generation like Lara, Pointing, Kallis etc, But as an Indian cricket fan,importance of Tendulkar on psyche of whole nation is much more than his individual records,world cup win or even his 256 international losses. It will be indeed end of an era once he retires from test cricket.