Destiny's Lad and a 'Holy' connection with Sachin Tendulkar

During the course of his 24-year-old international career, Sachin Tendulkar has rubbed shoulders with two generations of cricketers. On the home stretch of a magnificent journey, the 'God' of cricket is touching the lives of a brand new era of players. Twenty-one-year-old Siddesh Lad is one of them.

When Rahul Dravid was recently asked what is the most thing that Indian cricket will miss when Tendulkar retires after his 200th Test this November, the 'Wall' said: "It's his presence and inspiration. Players will miss Sachin's legacy and the challenge will be to take that forward in his absence."

Tendulkar has been a true 'teacher.' He is omnipresent in the dressing room. His work ethics and passion are lessons in life. The young Siddesh got a ring-side view of the master's methods when he had the privilege to train with the Master Blaster for almost four days at a stretch at Mumbai's Wankhede Stadium. Tendulkar trained with the Mumbai Ranji team ahead of his final first-class domestic game against Haryana at Lahli (near Rohtak) from Sunday.

Siddesh is one of the brightest prospects in Mumbai cricket. At 21, he is the youngest in the current Ranji Trophy squad. Siddhesh was under the arc lights when the Toyota University Cricket Championship, promoted by NDTV, was broadcasted live on television earlier this year. Siddhesh was the 'original' Mumbai University captain but had to miss games at the business end because of state commitments.

Bred in a cricket family, Siddhesh was perhaps born to play cricket. His father, Dinesh, spotted the talented Rohit Sharma when he was 12. Therefore, it wasn't surprising when Siddhesh was sent to Rohit's school, Swami Vivekananda International School in Borivali, where Senior Lad is still coach.

For young cricketers in Mumbai, performing in the Harris and Times Shield are like climbing ladders to the zenith of success. Siddhesh came through the ranks and on his Vijay Hazare Trophy (List A) 50-over debut for Mumbai in February this year, slammed an unbeaten 115 against Saurashtra. Mumbai won by 126 runs and they found a young man at No. 5 determined to excel for a state that has cricket riches aplenty.

When Siddhesh was born in May 1992, Tendulkar was already 27 Tests and 37 ODIs wise. Tendulkar had by then slammed three of his record 51 Test hundreds and was establishing himself as a leading batsman in world cricket. At 40, when Tendulkar is on the verge of retirement, Siddhesh is just marking his 'guard'.

"If I can achieve a portion of what he has done, I will think it will be an achievement but men like Sachin Tendulkar actually tell us that sky is the limit and you have to keep pushing the boundaries," Siddesh said in an exclusive chat this week. Siddhesh has been lucky to share the dressing room a couple of times last year - during Mumbai's first Ranji game against Railways and when India and England clashed in a Test match at Wankhede."

"But this time it's been very different. We knew he had announced his Test retirement and so the dressing room environment was a bit heavy. But for Tendulkar, it was business as usual. He was extremely cool and relaxed and went about his training like he always has," Siddhesh said, adding: "His presence is larger than life but his body language is so amiable that even people like us feel free to reach him easily. It is difficult to explain my feelings in front of such a personality."

So what did you learn from Tendulkar? Siddesh said: "His focus, his ability to treat everyone with dignity and his approach and preparation. He played the net bowlers like any international star and in spite of the fact that he has announced his retirement, his work ethics and ability to address every detail of his game was simply amazing."

"I have had a couple of long sessions with him, asking for tips to play certain kinds of bowling attacks," Siddhesh said, adding Tendulkar was patient with anyone who sought his advice. "I have stood behind the nets to see his technique," Siddesh added, emphasizing the perfection in Tendulkar's back-lift, feet movement and the overall body balance."

Tendulkar is expected to bat at his customary No. 4 position against Haryana and Siddesh is vying for a place in the middle-order (No. 5 and No. 6) where he is competing with a more experienced Abhishek Nayar and Aditya Tare. "I will still back myself to win a place and it will be the biggest gift of my cricket career if I can get my Ranji debut cap from Sachin Tendulkar," said Siddhesh.

Whether he gets his Ranji debut cap from Tendulkar or not, Siddesh already possesses something common and precious with the Little Master. It's a Sai Baba locket presented by Hemant Waingankar, a former cricket administrator and fast bowler who played with Sunil Gavaskar. Ravi Shastri was the first recipient of this locket from Waingankar while Tendulkar was second and Siddhesh, third. "I don't know if Tendulkar wears the locket, but I do for sure," says Siddhesh, who feels his four-day interaction with the 'God' of cricket makes him feel terribly blessed.