By Javagal Srinath
The success of a professional sportsperson is by and large assessed on the basis of his performances in his chosen field, but there is an inevitable connection between success and his bank balance.
With Sachin Tendulkar, no matter what the size and quantum of his contracts, what he cherished most was holding his bat aloft while acknowledging the cheers of his team mates and his millions of fans after scoring a hundred. Having known him well for so long, I can state with confidence that the pleasure he got from making runs is matchless, and that not even all the riches in the world can ever take his focus away from his cricket.
The two aspects of Sachin that I have always watched with awe are how he has conducted himself in public, and how he has handled his finances. There are lessons there to be learnt for the youngsters.
You may not be able to learn how he bats because after all, he is a once-in-a-lifetime kind of player, but you can take invaluable tips from the two aspects of his life that made him a special person as well.
So where does the sustenance in terms of conducting himself in the manner in which he does come from? The way Sachin has handled fame and adulation has amazed a lot of people, me included. The way he goes about dealing with people, with institutions, with society is both exemplary and praiseworthy.
He derives this sustenance and equanimity from strong middle-class values, from the way he has been brought up.
You can clearly see that influence of his parents and his older brother Ajit at every stage of Sachin’s life.
He has always been a very humble person, both when he was a young, starry-eyed kid and now, when he is on top of the world. His inherent respect for people and the humility that is a result of his upbringing have always held him in good stead.
The other crucial thing, apart from handling fame and adulation, is how you handle the sudden inflow of wealth. Sachin’s view on money is something people, and especially young kids who today have the opportunity of making a lot of money through cricket, should seriously look at.
Money has different meaning to all of us at different stages of our life, but he way Sachin has taken the material side of things in his stride is quite brilliant.
Money will come and go, but with Sachin, what I can gather is that he has a lifestyle aligned to what he is most passionate about.
If there ever has been a money vs passion for the game scenario, he has never allowed money to come in the way of his preparations and his cricket. No matter what material riches might have come along the way, what enthralled him most were the runs he scored on the pitch. At no stage have I seen him being ostentatious or giving prominence to money. The demarcation between cricket and life off it has been very clear, and there are no prizes for guessing what he put first.
To handle adulation, to handle money, and to carry on playing in the manner in which he did, the balance he struck, the prioritisation that came naturally to him – these are things that can be emulated.
When it comes to value systems, passion, playing the game in the right spirit, not to be seen embroiled in controversies, not to be seen in the wrong place at the wrong time – these are not just worth emulating, but they can be emulated too. In the end, your habits decide where your priorities lie, and Sachin’s habits have been so good that they have remained aligned to cricket all the time.