The Innings Sachin Won’t Play

He will do anything for cricket, but he won’t stand up for the game.

After everything that happened last week, the finest batsman to have ever represented India had this to say: “In my 21 years of international cricket, I have never heard of an Indian player being approached by bookies.” Sure, a wit on Twitter went, you didn’t hear, you only saw. 

The current turmoil involving Pakistan’s cricket team is not Tendulkar’s business. He is right in not offering a comment on the matter and exciting the press. But his statement that he is unaware of Indian players being involved with bookies is not only hard to believe but also a reminder of the sad fact that he does not stand up when it really matters. Tendulkar was captain of India during that wonderful time when few people knew what the heck was going on. It turned out that a quarter of his team was not playing to win. A player who was part of the squad that went to South Africa under his captaincy said in an interview a few years ago that Tendulkar was so frustrated that one night he went to a senior player’s hotel room and fired him for consistently throwing his wicket. 

Now, hearing him say what he did the other day required a suspension of disbelief. And when he said, “ICC should make a thorough probe into the spot-fixing scandal and take appropriate action if the players are found guilty,” it only sounded familiar because it was along the lines of the inactive calls for action made by lawmakers. As if by simply saying it, he was standing up for something greater.

While Tendulkar’s silence is no different from the silence of cricketers who came before him, it makes a louder sound. It tells you that there are places he won’t go. The expectation surrounding him is greater only because he seems greater than everyone else. And yet what made this more disappointing was that he’s in a position of strength right now. His game is greater than it has ever been, and his legend is stronger than it has ever been. He is that rare thing: an idol we’d take very seriously if he gave us the word. But he won’t. And that’s why, when the history of these times is written, there will be a lot we won’t know. We won’t know why cruelty was inflicted on people who love the game, and when it first began.  

It’s also why, when he says he never heard of the crime, one can’t help but feel robbed.