He is an adored symbol of the new India who this week rewrote cricket's record books yet again. Only Don Bradman outranks him as a batsman, and his astonishing career is far from over
Sachin Tendulkar's story is the story of modern India, the India that 60 years after independence is emerging as a major power and producing iconic figures for whom the tag Indian is no longer a burden but an advertisement.
It is not without significance that, when Tendulkar became the first man to score a double 100 in a 50-over match this week, he dedicated his achievements to India. He did the same when, just over a year ago, his century in the Chennai Test helped to defeat England. The Test had come just weeks after the terrorist attacks in Mumbai. For some time it was not certain whether the England team would travel to India.
Tendulkar had not only fashioned an unlikely Indian victory but he also saw his innings as providing some balm to the terrible wounds suffered by his home town. It was the clearest sign of how much he identified with his country and his country with him.
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