Right...

I woke up at 3 AM. I was shaken awake by Thompson. He was (W)right! He said:
"Tendulkar is a closed book. He smiles and walks to the center of the pitch. His play suggests he is bending under the weight, but he'll never admit it. Nobody knows how he feels about the century. What does Tendulkar think about the quest? He cares enough to keep chasing it, but maybe the media and the ex-players and the manic fans are missing the point. Scoring the century doesn't define his career, but the chasing of it does, the willingness to risk failing for the chance of success."

The India-Bangladesh Asia Cup encounter started an hour later at 4 AM US EST. I havevbeen toggling between MS Outlook, MS Project, MS Excel and http://www.hitcric.info/ ever since. It is 626 AM now and He just clipped the ball over mid-wicket for his 8th boundary of the innings. Remember, 6 of the 8 have come front of the wicket on the off side (very few will know what that means). He's batting 87...

No one knows if He will get to THE mark! We've got to wait and see. But when I read Wright Thompson's article last night, I realized something. Whether He gets his 100th Hundred or not, He's not going to be batting for very long. And I am not going to get many Fridays when a match starts at 4 AM allowing me the luxury of sitting on my couch in silence and watch Him bat. That's what it has always been about for me. Just "watching him bat"...

I am fond of this couch. About a year ago (may be 15 days short!), I stayed awake a whole Friday night for a similar early AM start of the most important cricket match in the world. The World Cup Final. I was logged in to Facebook all along and saw my friends, relatives and countrymen bash India as they gave away a huge total to Sri Lanka. At lunch (which was breakfast time for us), I ate hot white pongal and settled back on this very same couch. "Just sit down and watch the game patiently", I said to my son and wife. "India will win today"...

"Oh My God", I screamed sometime later, "Oh. My. God."! Those were the only words that I ever uttered in the next 3.5 hours of watching India bat. But no, that was not MS Dhoni clobbering one over deep long on to bring about the much awaited World Cup win. It was Sachin Tendulkar's straight drive that stayed just to the right of the stumps at the bowler's end and made the umpire jump up in the air on its way to the boundary. Those are the only 2 shots I remember from that entire World cup final, one of which I will never forget...

He just drove through extracover to go from 90 to 94. A little while ago, Neo Sports displayed a comparison of Sachin and Virat playing the inside-out cover drive. Both of them have very similar styles, the foot movement, how they transfer the body weight and lean into the shot. But at the very end, just at the very end, there is only one bat whose full open face one could witness. Tony Greig once said, "Sachin has 3 straight drives, Straight, Straighter, Straightest"...

The Man's now on 99! Only one moment separates him from history. But Raina gets a single of the last ball of the over. Raina sure knows how to make the world wait! My son who was asleep on the couch to my right just woke up and my wife is sitting on the arm rest to my left. And Raina has just scored one boundary, one brace (2), one dot ball and finally a single to give Him the strike of the last 2 balls of the over. He lets 2 dot balls go. This time he asks us to wait Himself...

Just at this very moment, Hitcric loses its stream! Good old Cricinfo it is and it shows Sachin Tendulkar 100 of 138! Since it was Thompson whose (W)righteousness who woke me up this morning, I guess it is fair that I witness THE MOMENT on ESPN Cricinfo. Oh My God! The world has waited for this for over a year. But I think, HE waited for ME to wake up and watch him do it...

He's quickly moved on to 111. And Raina at the other end is plundering away, what with the innings into the last 5 overs. A lot will be said about the way he got here. "He just stuck around for this", they will cry. "Oh, how slowly he played", some will moan. "What is so great about getting it against Bangladesh?", the world at large will say. I will not say anything. For, there are a few, only a few out there in this small world, who are connected at this moment (Facebook or not!), their hearts swelling with pride...

With 3 overs to go, there is not much left in this innings. Raina has got his 50 and just got out. Well played indeed. And The Man himself just got out 114 of 147 balls. What can I say? Sitting on my couch, I join the standing ovation...

India will likely go on to win this game and send Bangladesh home (wait, they live here don't they? And I stole that from the commentator on ESPN Cricinfo!). India will go on to their next one against Pakistan, on Sunday, same time. And I will be up at 345 AM and ready with my cup of coffee, sitting on the couch. He may score his 101th! He may get his 162nd fifty. Or he may be out bowled first ball. No matter what, I will be awake. Just to watch him bat...

Oh BTW Virat. Well played today (66 of 82 balls). Loved your delectable leg glances off fast bowling early on and the energetic punches through the off side later on. And oh! Good Luck shouldering the billion people who will be sitting on you, watching the every move you make, coming soon! If you can do it for the next 20 something years, I may wake up one morning when I am 60, just to watch you bat...

Someone...

Steve Jobs is dead. Sachin Tendulkar is almost out. The world needs "Someone"...

Clearly, I am the problem (I always was and I always will be). I believe in iCons! I believe that when great people, who have changed the world, leave, they leave behind not just a legacy, but a hole. I believe that they leave behind big shoes to fill. And I believe that those shoes cannot be filled. Maybe because I feel that when one that great leaves, that he or she should be missed. That those around should feel the pain of not having them. Clearly, I am a sadist...

I walked past an Apple store today and saw some new stuff in there. I saw some snazzy displays. A screen in a cloud. What was that? Everything else looks the same. The minimalistic design. The men in blue t-shirts. The Genius Bar. The flocking crowds. And the aura that comes with an Apple store. But something was missing for me. "Someone"...

Rahul Dravid retired today. So many friends on Facebook said he was their favorite cricketer. One even said, Sachin should take the cue and retire himself and not wait for his 100th hundred. I'd waste time trying to convince those who think that's why he's still around. So I'll let it rest. But the day he decides to hang up his boots, rest assured, my fever for cricket will end. I'm telling you, I am the problem...

I try to think back to what people say. "iCons are missed, no doubt, but the legend never dies", they told me. "The trail continues to blaze. Only now, the torch is carried by someone else"...

I try to think back to my favorite stories. When Pele was gone, it took a Zico to be the next No. 10, not just anyone. A Federer followed a Sampras but only in a while. Jeff Immelt, is no doubt a worthy successor to Jack Welch, but he will never be the Businessman of the Century. Why, it took a Tendulkar to be the next Gavaskar, none more, none less...

The legend goes on, for sure. The trail will blaze. "Someone" will come. But don't get me wrong. Tim Cook can never fill Steve Jobs' shoes. And Virat Kohli will never be Sachin Tendulkar. Because, what it takes to change the world is not "Someone" random, but "Someone" special...

"Someone" truly INCREDIBLE...