Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar

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By popular opinion the greatest batsman in the world today, Sachin Tendulkar has the cricketing world at his feet - a fact reinforced by the reaction that greeted his suspended ban for ball-tampering during the second Test at Port Elizabeth. The adulation he commands the world over is unsurpassed, and has been perhaps since the days of Don Bradman, to whom of course he has been compared by no less than the great man himself.

But while he may not end with a career Test average of 99.94, there is little doubt that, based on his vigorous style of batsmanship and his insatiable appetite for runs and big scores, he is the most complete batsman since Sir Vivian Richards. In many ways, though, he has surpassed even that outstanding West Indian batsman.

When Tendulkar is on song, there is no more majestic sight in the cricketing world. The spectators at the stadium are on their feet cheering, while all over the world TV audiences are glued to the screen. He has scored heavily on all kinds of wickets the world over, in conditions that lesser mortals have not been able to master and against bowlers whom other batsmen have found it difficult to score off.

Immensely gifted and blessed with impeccable technique, Tendulkar's batting is a dream, combining timing, elegance and power. Mentally very strong, Tendulkar is best when confronted by a challenge, as he showed when mowing down Shane Warne in India in 1998. Captain for two short stints, Tendulkar has made it clear that he would prefer to concentrate on his batting. Indeed, he seems to be getting better with every passing year. Scoring two double centuries in successive seasons and being the first to cross the 10,000-run barrier in one-dayers is clear proof of this.

After a remarkable run of 84 Tests uninterrupted, a toe injury forced Tendulkar to miss the tour of Sri Lanka. The tour of South Africa surely will not rate among his fondest; despite have maintained a stainless reputation on and off the field, he found himself dragged into a mighty controversy. Batting-wise, his runs in the one-dayers and the first innings of the first Test would have given him immense pleasure. but being a perfectionist, his relative failure in the remainder of the series as a whole would have rankled him.