Farewell Tendulkar - the most celebrated cricketer ever!

I wrote yesterday about Sachin Tendulkar's last innings and his place in history but now the Little Master's illustrious career really has ended there is room for an extra blog from me. A million other writers will convey their love and admiration with greater skill or passion than I could muster, but I can't let the occasion pass without comment.

The boy from Bombay (as was) may not actually have been the most entertaining or exciting batsman ever, nor even the one with the highest average, but who can doubt his immense popularity. Bradman, Richards, Sobers, Compton and co may have edged Tendulkar in many ways but none of them could have bowed out in such a theatrical climax on home territory. Were there any Indians not watching on TV either as he left the pitch for the final time, either as batsman or victorious fielder?

People have performed objective and subjective statistical analyses of Tendulkar's contributions to India over the past 24 years, including the ICC rankings, and concluded that his stature owes more to longevity and consistency than world-leading brilliance at any single point. True, he was almost always part of an excellent batting line-up and so he didn't necessarily stand out in his team as much as, say, Peter May, Greg Chappell or, more recently, Brian Lara. Nevertheless, 24 years at the top, seeing off almost all modern competitors to the title of greatest ever, is an achievement in itself. His thanks to the doctors was probably truly heartfelt but of course his talent, temperament and humility have elevated him above even Ponting, Lara and his often under-rated partner Rahul Dravid in the eyes of many cricket supporters.

The 2nd Test slaughter of the woeful Windies included memorable centuries by Sharma and Pujara and a terrific ten-wicket haul for Pragyan Ojha. The two-match series also featured excellent all-round contributions by Ravi Ashwin. It also featured an embarrassing couple of performances by the Caribbean opposition. Yet such is the drama of a legend's farewell that the series and the day belonged to Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar.

Good luck to his successors Kohli, Dhawan, Sharma et al. It's down to them, along with the new spin twins, to maintain India's place at or close to the top of world cricket. No pressure!

Player of the Week: Pragyan Ojha

In Bulawayo this week, Zimbabwe followed their dominance over Bangladesh by giving Pakistan a bit of a scare, too. For the home team, Tino Mawoyo carried his bat for 163 in only his second Test match. However, Pakistan's Aizaz Cheema finished with match figures of 8 for 103 in his first, and Mohammed Hafeez struck a Test career best 119 and 4-31 to achieve an unlikely win.

In England, Durham beat Sussex to stay top of the County Championship with just one match to go. However, Shivnarine Chanderpaul scored another 166 runs, helping Warwickshire beat Yorkshire, simultaneously putting his side in pole position to win the title while condemning the White Rose to a likely relegation. Hampshire meanwhile maintained their recovery by giving a weakened Somerset a right thumping at Taunton. Michael Carberry was involved in a another huge partnership, this time 373 for the 2nd wicket. However, there was no 300 this week, only a mere 182, while opener Jimmy Adams reached 207. Lancashire blew their chance to lead Division One after Worcestershire's veteran seamer Alan Richardson blew them away in the second innings with 6-22.

In Division Two, Middlesex went top. Andrew Strauss abandoned his new love Somerset and returned to his old home at Lord's and scored 241 not out in the county's ten wicket win over lowly Leicestershire. He would have won my Player of the Week award, but the man who took rivals Surrey to a crucial victory against long-time leaders Northamptonshire pipped him to the post.

At Northampton, Stephen Davies and Zander de Bruyn outscored the opposition on their own but the most notable performance of the week came from Pragyan Ojha. In the second innings, the Indian international left-arm spinner delivered 16.3 overs from the Wantage Road End, claiming a staggering six wickets for only eight runs. A very tasty early 25th birthday present, that must be his best performance in his career so far. His Test record is nothing to write home about, but like many fellow young Indian spinners, he has made his name in the IPL as a model of economy. If only he could carry the sort of form he showed in last week's Championship fixture, maybe he could move above Ashwin, Harbajhan et al in the Indian Test pecking order for slow bowlers.