Goodbye Sachin, God bless. A true Bharat Ratna.

Future generations who will not experience the Sachin phenomenon will never know what this endearing genius was all about. Mere numbers, monumental as they are, can never reveal the true saga of this great cricketer. An icon like no other, an inspirational figure like no other. A true Bharat Ratna. Heartiest congratulations to Sachin and the family on his being conferred with the Bharat Ratna, deservedly.

Test Matches 200
Runs 15,921
Highest Score 248*
Average 53.78
Hundreds 51
Fifties 68

One-day Internationals 463
Runs 18,426
Highest Score 200*
Average 44.83
Hundreds 49
Fifties 96

15847 was Sachin's Test aggregate at the end of his 199th game. The date of India’s independence is also 15.8.47. But talking of round figures, Sachin played 200 Test matches, was the first to score 200 in One-day internationals, and finished with 100 100s. Talk about a cent per cent record! But something that everyone must acknowledge is that he gave his 100 percent 100 percent of the time. What more do we want? That is his true legacy that must inspire generations.

I will not see anything better in my life. I have seen Gavaskar, Richards, Tendulkar and Lara.....and many more. What more is there to see? Now let the new generation regale the youngsters. I am satiated, delighted, content and grateful.

There is no end to one's desires and dreams. What happened was the real thing. But, honestly, 100 international Hundreds sounds better than 101 Hundreds! In an ideal world one would have liked Tendulkar to have scored his 100th international hundred in this, his 200th Test match and reaching an aggregate of 16,000 runs, having already scored 381 and 401 in Test matches, another record double century (220) in One-day Internationals, and 502 in a first-class game earlier. We must not be that greedy. There is plenty of space for the Laras, and the Sehwags, and something for the likes of Jacques Kallis, Mahela Jayawardene, Kumar Sangakkara and Virat Kohli to strive for.

We will never see another like Sachin again. We will never experience what we have during the magnificent career of this little genius. I hope people understand the significance of what they have seen. They will never see the like of it ever again in our lives. We will all carry these priceless memories to the next world up above.

We can only marvel at this lovable little genius. I am almost 18 years older than Sachin Tendulkar, but I have also learnt so much from Sachin the person and Tendulkar the champion. Forget youngsters, he is an inspiration to me too. Taking a cue from him, I still want to strive for so many things in my own small way.

This whole series and final Test have been memorable. Actually, it has been a month-long Sachin festival. If you wish to make a film on Sachin's farewell, do not write a script. Just take the original pictures. Cricket and all the players, and the former superstars were all incidental to the main plot. And rightly so. The game is indeed bigger than any player, however great, and it is precisely for this reason that it will go on long after Tendulkar has retired. But for this one month it has been an exhilarating farewell to India's biggest icon of the past quarter-century.

I think Sachin should not waste too much of his time on regular commentary, writing or coaching. He should be a mentor, not just to the present Indian team and youngsters, but to all sportspersons and youth in different spheres of life. He should lead a revolution in Indian sports and many other fields, not by entering politics or becoming an administrator. He should do it all from the outside simply as Sachin Tendulkar. He is too great for any post, and too noble for petty politics.