The 37-year-old said it's important to give youngsters a chance to test their skills in home condition before they embark on foreign tours. "This is the right time to give opportunity to young players before overseas series." Laxman said he was fortunate to play with some of the finest cricketers played for India. "[I am] fortunate to play in an era when Indian team played some of its best cricket home and abroad. I always tried my best to give to the team while maintaining my dignity. There must be time I may have disappointed my team but I never fell shorts in my efforts."

And though the Hyderabad Cricket Association appealed Laxman to play the forthcoming home Test against New Zealand, the classical said the decision taken was a well-thought one. “This decision was not taken in haste. This has been a very tough decision for me as I always took pride in playing for the country." Laxman was included in India's squad to face New Zealand in a two-Test series beginning with the first Test from August 23 at Hyderabad.

Laxman although wants to contribute back to the game he has played for 16 years, his first priority is to spend time with his family. "I would want to contribute back to the game. [But my] first priority is to spend time with the family." He also made clear that he will represent Hyderabad in the upcoming season of Ranji Trophy. Laxman termed the historical 281-run knock he played in the 2001 Kolkata Test against Australia was his most cherished one. "I remember my 281 in Kolkata against Australia was special. What a match that was! We bounced back from a tough situation."

He also said the Indian selectors were surprised when he disclosed his decision to them this morning. "The selectors and board president [N Srinivasan] were surprised at my decision when I communicated to them this morning, but I managed to convince them." The tall batsman - known for his gift of timing the ball - made his Test debut in November 1996 and has played 134 Tests, in which he scored 17 hundreds and 56 half-centuries at an average of 45.97. Laxman also played 86 ODIs for India at a batting average of 30.76. He scored six centuries and 10 half-centuries in ODI cricket.

Andrew Flintoff:

When you bowl at him you are not just trying to get him out, you are trying to impress him. "I want him to walk off thinking 'that Flintoff, he's all right isn't he? I feel privileged to have played against him.

Shane Warne:

"Sachin Tendulkar is, in my time, the best player without doubt - daylight second, Brian Lara third."

Viv Richards:

He is 99.5% Perfect.. I'll pay to watch him play. I think he is marvellous. I think he will fit in whatever category of Cricket that has been played or will be played, from the first ball that has ever been bowled to the last ball that's going to be. He can play in any era and at any level.

Sir Don Bradman:

I saw him playing on television and was struck by his technique, so I asked my wife to come look at him. Now I never saw myself play, but I feel that this player is playing much the same as I used to play, and she looked at him on Television and said yes, there is a similarity between the two...hi compactness, technique, stroke production... it all seemed to gel! in reference to Sachin Tendulkar.

Barry Richards:

Consensus is that Sir Donald Bradman was the best batsman ever to play Cricket. Sir Don did not play One-Day Cricket but if he did, he could easily be Sachin Tendulkar.

Allan Donald:

"In my several years of international cricket, Tendulkar remains the best batsman I have ever bowled to. It's been a pleasure to bowl at the master batsman even though one hasn't always emerged with credit from the engagements."

"During our team meetings, we often speak about the importance of the first 12 balls to Tendulkar. If you get him then you can thank your stars, otherwise it could mean that tough times lie ahead."

Harsha Bhogle:

In the recently concluded IPL when Sachin drove Ishant Sharma to a straight drive, he said- "Open the text book..turn to page no. 32"

Andrew Symonds:

wrote on an aussie t-shirt he autographed specially for Sachin. " To Sachin, the man we all want to be "

A.R.Rahman:

Well, I’m no Sachin Tendulkar you know, whenever he takes the field, people expect him to score a century before he loses his wicket. I can only give in my best and I always strive to live up to fans expectations, but it’s not possible to get an Oscar every time.

Virendra Sehwag:

Both of us have come a long away and it is a great honour that Tendulkar thinks I come close to resembling him as a batsman. It is a great honour, like a dream come true. If I die tomorrow I'll be the happiest man because I played this game because of Tendulkar, and Tendulkar himself saying that I resemble him - there is no bigger compliment than that.

Mathew Hayden:

I have seen GOD , he bats at no.4 for india in Tests. Brain Lara: Sachin is a genius , i am a mere mortal! Barry Richards: Sachin is crickets GOD

Martin Crowe:

The shot played on this ball is only possible for the GOD of cricket.

Paul Strang:
What we [zimbabwe] need is 10 tendulkars.

Steve Waugh:

There is no shame losing to such a great player(sachin).

Shane Warne:

I would go to bed having nightmares of sachin dancing down the ground and hitting me for sixes.

Mathew Hayden:

His life seems to be a stillness in a frantic world... [When he goes out to bat], it is beyond chaos - it is a frantic appeal by a nation to one man. The people see him as a God...

Dennis Lillie:

If I had to bowl to Sachin I would bowl with a halmet on. He hits the ball so hard. Steve Waugh: After being defeated in the Coca-Cola Cup finals in Sharjah) "It was one of the greatest innings I have ever seen. There is no shame being beaten by such a great player, Sachin is perhaps only next to the Don''

Michael Kasprowicz:

Don't bowl him bad balls, he hits the good ones for fours."

Shane Warne:

I'll be going to bed having nightmares of Sachin just running down the wicket and belting me back over the head for six. He was unstoppable. I don't think anyone, apart from Don Bradman, is in the same class as Sachin Tendulkar. He is just an amazing player."

Wasim Akram:

Today, he showed the world why he is considered the best batsman around. Some of the shots he played were simply amazing. Earlier, opposing teams used to feel that Sachin's dismissal meant they could win the game. Today, I feel that the Indian players, too, feel this way.

Wasim Akram, after game at Hobart, CUB series, 1999

Brett Lee:

You might pitch a ball on the off stump and think you have bowled a good ball and he walks across and hits it for two behind midwicket. His bat looks so heavy but he just waves it around like it's a toothpick.

Brett Lee, on Sachin Tendulkar's batting, 1999

BBC Sports:

Beneath the helmet, under that unruly curly hair, inside the cranium, there is something we don't know, something beyond scientific measure. Something that allows him to soar, to roam a territory of sport that, forget us, even those who are gifted enough to play alongside him cannot even fathom. When he goes out to bat, people switch on their television sets and switch off their lives.

Wasim Akram:

"I dont know what to bowl at him. i bowled an inswinger n he drove me through covers of d front foot. then i bld an outswinger n he again punched throgh covers of d backfoot(for tamil fans-dai avan eppadi pottalum adikaranda). he is d toughest batsmen i 've bowled to.

He shold live long n score lots of runs, but not against pakistan(smiling) "- on 24th april 2004 on espn Sachin's 30th B day program.

Sunil Gavaskar:

India's fortune will depend on how many runs the little champion scores. There is no doubt Tendulkar is the real thing.

Richie Benaud:

He has defined cricket in his fabulous, impeccable manner. He is to batting what Shane Warne is to bowling.

Geoffrey Boycott:

Technically, you can't fault Sachin. Seam or spin, fast or slow nothing is a problem.

Eddie Barlow:

He is Sachin Tendulkar. I hope he stays Sachin Tendulkar. We need a new player, a player in his own way. He has a technique which is the hallmark of a great player. Everything indicates that he will be a great player and I am sure he will prove me right. Reminds me of Barry Richards.

Greg Chappell:

He is a perfectly balanced batsman and knows perfectly well when to attack and when to play defensive cricket. He has developed the ability to treat bowlers all over the world with contempt and can destroy any attack with utmost ease.

Abdul Qadir:

I Was fielding in the covers Tendulkar came out to bat in his debut Test at Karachi. I still remember Waqar Younis was at his peak form at that time. Tendulkar tried to drive Waqar through the covers off his very first ball in Test cricket but was beaten all ends up. But I walked to captain Imran Khan and told him 'this kid looks very good' and Imran agree with me.


Sir Garfield Sobers:

I have watched a lot of Tendulkar and we have spoken to each other a lot. He has it in him to be among the very best.

Peter Roebuck:

Sometime back I had written a piece that said that Sachin's the master and Lara a genius with his head high up somewhere. That's it!

Jeff Thompson:

Sachin is an attacker. He has much more power than Sunny. He wants to be the one to set the pace. He has to be on top. That's the buzz about him.

Ian Healy:

Tendulkar is the most comouncy pitch with Hughes, McDermott and Whitney gunning for him he only had 60-odd when No 11 came in. I've seen him against Warne too.

Mike Coward:

Sachin's the best. I've had this view since I saw him score that hundred in Sydney in 1992. He's the most composed batsman I've ever seen.

Hashim Amla:

Nothing bad can happen to us if we're on a plane in India with Sachin Tendulkar on it. Hashim Amla, the South African batsman, reassures himself as he boards a flight.

Shahrukh Khan:

"Maybe the country doesn't pray for me like they do for Sachin Tendulkar, but I know I'm on a good wicket as well. "

Martina Navratilova:

"Sachin was so focused. He never looked like getting out. He was batting with single-minded devotion. It was truly remarkable. It was a lesson." Tennis legend joins the Sachin Tendulkar fan club after watching him bat at Sydney.

Alistair Campbell:

After loosing to India in the Coca Cola Cup final at Sharjah in November '98

"He has everything a top batsman needs. Tendulkar is a classic example of a player being so good that his age is an irrelevance"

David Boon:

"Technically he stands out as the best because of his ability to increase the pace at will"

Cricket Historian Vasant Raiji:

"I have always felt C. K. Nayadu was the best. I now think sachin has the honour of being the most outstanding batsman of all time."

Steve Waugh:

"You take Don Bradman away and he is next up I reckon."

Adam Hollioke:

"In an over I can bowl six different balls. But then Sachin looks at me with a sort of gentle arrogance down the pitch as if to say 'Can you bowl me another one?'"

Tony Greig:

He is cool, has magnificent temperament, and is so mature you tend to forget his age. I can't think of any other example of a player who has so dominated the world before the age of 25.

Allan Border: (after India won the Coca-Cola cup )
"Hell, if he stayed, even at 11 an over he would have got it."

Ajay Jadeja: (after India won the Coca-Cola cup )

"I can't dream of an innings like that. He exists where we can't."

David Gower:

"In the last session in Nagpur, when the Indian chase was still on, Tendulkar hit a reverse sweep, an orthodox sweep and a lofted cover drive to (Ian) Blackwell. They were all exquisite cricket shots. To play those shots deliberately in such quick succession, off almost similar deliveries, was genius. That was a little jewel, just those 3-4 minutes.

"It reminds you how very few people are special. It was a case of great thinking and good technique."

Gavaskar ..back in 1988 to tom alter:

I sat in the office of Sportsweek magazine with that same Sunil Gavaskar. Ayaz Memon and I were listening to Gavaskar in one of his rare, priceless moods. The ?Little Master? was delving deep into his own experience, his own genius, and bringing forth pearls of wisdom as sudden, and as effective, as his straight- drives back past the bowler. Then Gavaskar came up with the following statement (remember, this was in 1988, when Dilip Vengsarkar was about to become captain of India): "The two best batsmen in Bombay today are Vengsarkar and Sachin Tendulkar." Full stop. End of statement. The ball crosses the boundary-line underneath the sight- screen.

Desmond Haynes:

In terms of technique and compactness, Tendulkar is the best: Desmond Haynes.

Wasim Akram:

"Cricketers like Sachin come once in a lifetime and I am privileged he played in my time"

"Tuzhe pata hai tune kiska catch chhoda hai?" Wasim Akram to Abdul Razzaq when the latter dropped Sachin's catch.

Allan Donald:

His shot selection is superb, he just lines you up and can make you look very silly. Everything is right in his technique and judgement. There isn't a fault there. He is also a lovely guy, and over the years I've enjoyed some interesting chats with him… Sachin is in a different class to Lara as a professional cricketer. He is a model cricketer, and despite the intolerable pressures he faces back home, he remains a really nice guy… Sachin is also the best batsman in the world, pulling away from Brain Lara every year.

Anil Kumble:

He's shy little gentleman.

I am very privileged to have played with him and seen most of the runs that he has scored. I am also extremely happy to have shared the same dressing room... He is a very reserved person and generally keeps to himself. He is very determined, committed and doesn't show too many emotions. He just goes about doing his job.

The thing I admire most about this man is his poise. The way he moves, elegantly without ever looking out of place in any condition or company, suggests his pedigree. I remember he had once come to New Delhi in the 1990s to collect his Arjuna Award (India's highest award to its top sportspersons) and he asked me if I would attend the function. He is a very sensitive human being…. Sometimes you feel he really hasn't felt the kind of competition in the world his talent deserves. I would have loved to see him perform against top quality cricketers of the previous generation. It would really have brought out the best in him.

Greame Pollock:

Tendulkar is the best in the world at the moment. Why I've always liked him is that batsmen tend to be negative at times and I think batting is not about not getting out - it is to play positively. I think you got to take it to the bowlers and Sachin is one such player. When you do so, you change the game, you change bowlers because they suddenly start bowling badly because they are under pressure.
Ian Chappell:

Whenever I see Sachin play I am reminded of the Graeme Pollock quote of Cricket being a 'see the ball, hit the ball game.' He hits the ball as if it's there to be hit.

Ravi Shastri:

"We always knew that Sachin Tendulkar is a great cricketer, but after the Coca-Cola Cup here, we have seen the birth of a legend. I can't think of anybody who has batted more authoritatively in one day cricket for India, or even in the world except for Vivian Richards."

Navjot Sidhu:

"His mind is like a computer. He stores data on bowlers and knows where they are going to pitch the ball."

Mark Taylor:

"We did not lose to a team called India...we lost to a man called Sachin"

Mark Taylor:

during the test match in Chennai (1997) He's a phenomenon. We have to be switched on when he plays allow him no boundries, for then he doesn't stop.

Rahul Dravid:

Playing in the same team as Sachin is a huge honour. His balance of mind, shrewd judgement, modesty and, above all, his technical brilliance make him my all-time hero... You can't get a more complete cricketer than Sachin. He has everything that a cricketer needs to have.

As a batsman, he has the technique, the hunger and the desire for runs. He always contributes with the bat as well as on the field. He also is a good fielder and bowls when needs. You really can't ask for a better cricketer than Sachin... He is a terrific person and has handled pressure brilliantly. He has handled his success very well and doesn't have any airs about him. He is a great guy and very good team man. In his heart of hearts, he is a very simple and down to earth person.

Mohd. Azharuddin:

The more I see him, the more I want to see him.

Harsha bhogle:

If sachin plays well... India sleeps well.

Kris Srikkanth:

"He is the only match-winning batsman we have"

Ranatunga:

"You get him out and half the battle is won"

Andy Flower:

There are 2 kind of batsmen in the world. One Sachin Tendulkar. Two all the others.

Martin Crowe:

A flighted full toss on Leg stump by spinner. any other will play this shot on leg side by pull shot or glance or flick. but sachin made a space and played a perfect cover drive for four runs.

Shane Warne:

You have to decide for yourself whether you're bowling well or not. He's going to hit you for fours and sixes anyway. Kasprowicz has a superior story. During the Bangalore Test, frustrated, he went to Dennis Lillee and asked, "Mate, do you see any weaknesses?" Lillee replied, "No Michael, as long as you walk off with your pride that's all you can do".
Rudy Kortzen:

"I never get tired during umpiring whenever sachin is on crease"

Sunil gavaskar:

India's fortune will depend on how many runs the little champion scores. There is no doubt Tendulkar is the real thing .This was after a wonderful century by sachin(in england i guess in a test match..not sure)

The other day i was just trying to think of a bowler who can go through sachin's defenses when sachin is in total defense. I am sorry but i could not think of even one name who could do that. If sachin decides he doesnt want to give away his wicket, he wont. be it any bowler in the world. Cheers to Sachin...


Pradeep Mandhani -a Photographer:

“Barely two hours after landing in Johannesburg on the 1992-93 tour to South Africa, the team was to visit Tolstoy Farm, Mahatma Gandhi's first Satyagrahi Commune founded in 1910. It was situated 35 kms from Jo'burg and most of the Indian players showed little interest, longing to rest in the hotel after the long flight. But Tendulkar, still a teenager, looked keen and hungry to learn more about Gandhi. His volley of questions to the guide reflected his national pride.” NKP Salve, former Union Minister.

Sourav Ganguly:

SACHIN MADE 9 CENTURIES IN ONE YEAR BUT MANY CRICKETER DIDNOT MAKE 9 CENTURIES IN THEIR WHOLE CARRIER.The thing I like most about Sachin is his intensity. After being in the game for so long, he still has the same desire to do well for India in any international match.I tell you what, this man is a legend.

Ricky Ponting:

“Sachin is the most complete batsman I have seen. His technique is so good and he has played well in all conditions. To have 41 one-day international tons shows what an appetite he has for scoring runs.”


QUOTES COMPILED BY US FROM VARIOUS SITES

"Recently, their families met and finalised the wedding details. A final decision will be taken when Zaheer returns from the ongoing Australian tour. If they don`t marry in March, they will do so in October. But they are keen on March," their friend revealed. The wedding will be a grand affair and both personalities from cricket and Bollywood are expected to grace the occasion.

INDIA'S pain was compounded last night when captain M.S. Dhoni was banned from the final Test in Adelaide for presiding over a sluggish over rate as Michael Clarke's ambitious side seized the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. The 3-0 series victory took less than 11 days of play and came with a win by an innings and 37 runs in the third Test in Perth. In further bad news for an Indian side that has produced no convincing evidence it wants to be here, Clarke said there was no such thing as a dead rubber, indicating his side would ruthlessly pursue a 4-0 whitewash in Adelaide next week. He declared he would not relax until his team had taken the No.1 world Test ranking from England.

Dhoni is the first Test captain to be suspended since the International Cricket Council last year introduced suspensions for captains found guilty of two over rate transgressions in a 12-month period in the same format, and was also fined 40 per cent of his match fee. The other Indian players were slapped with 20 per cent fines. Dhoni, who was also fined for a slow over rate in the West Indies last June, was rubbed out after match referee Ranjan Madugalle adjudged India to be two overs behind their target.

The Indian captain has been questioned for his reckless batting, tactical decisions and commitment to Test cricket on this tour, and will hand the captaincy to Virender Sehwag, who last week rubbished reports of a falling out with Dhoni. Reserve wicketkeeper Wriddhiman Saha will come into the side for Adelaide. Ben Hilfenhaus and Peter Siddle ended India's resistance just after lunch by capturing the last four wickets for no runs. When the final wicket fell, Siddle made a beeline for man-of-the-match David Warner and the Australians leapt into each other's arms to celebrate a series win more emphatic than any of them could have imagined on Boxing Day.

Ed Cowan, whose 214-run partnership with Warner took the game away from India, said the Adelaide Test was a chance to show the world Australia were back in business. ''We will be looking to go four-nil, make a statement not only about the series but moving forward as a team,'' Cowan said. In his short time as Test captain, Clarke's Australians have beaten Sri Lanka in Sri Lanka, matched South Africa in South Africa, drawn with New Zealand at home and demolished India 3-0 with one Test to play. But Clarke said Australia's mission was incomplete and, when the words ''dead rubber'' were uttered in the post-match press conference, he said Australia would not take their foot off the pedal in Adelaide, where spinner Nathan Lyon will come back into the side for one of the fast bowlers.

''Take those words back please, there's no such thing as a dead rubber for me,'' Clarke said. ''We haven't achieved much at this stage. We should be very proud, don't get me wrong, to have beaten the No. 2 Test team in the world in this series, but we've got a lot of hard work to do before we will be satisfied, and you will see that in Adelaide. Our goal has not changed from the first Test of the series, and it won't change until we achieve what we want as a team.

''We are a long way from the team we want to be. It's a nice feeling to have won this series but our goal is to be the No.1 team in the world.'' But Clarke said he had not considered how the team was shaping up before the 2013 Ashes, less than a year after its 3-1 loss at home to England triggered a series of hard decisions that are reaping stunning rewards. ''England is so far away, I don't think we even need to consider it,'' he said. ''Our goal is to win every Test match in this series. We've won the first three. We'll look to win in Adelaide and continue to improve our cricket. When you win games of cricket against the No.2 Test team in the world, that is the result of the hard work we've been putting in.''

Scorecard:

India 1st innings:
G. Gambhir c Haddin b Hilfenhaus 31
V. Sehwag c Ponting b Hilfenhaus 0
R. Dravid b Siddle 9
S. Tendulkar lbw Harris 15
V.V.S. Laxman c Clarke b Siddle 31
V. Kohli cWarner b Siddle 44
M.S.Dhoni c Ponting b Hilfenhaus 12
R.V.Kumar lbw b Starc 5
Z.Khan c Clarke b Hilfenhaus 2
I,Sharma c Haddin b Starc 3
U.Yadav not out 4
Extras: (b2, lb2, w1) 5

Total: (for All Out ; 60.2 overs) 161

Fall of wickets: 1-4 (Sehwag), 2-32 (Dravid), 3-59 (Tendulkar), 4-63 (Gambhir),5-131(kohli), 6-138 (Laxman),7-152 (R.V.Kumar), 8 -152(MS.Dhoni), 9-157 ( Z.Khan), 10-161 ( I.Sharma)

Bowling:
Ryan Harris 18-6-33-1
Ben Hilfenhaus 18-5-43-4
Mitchell Starc 12.2-3-39-2
Peter Siddle 12-3-42-3

Australia 1st innings:
EJM Cowan not out 40
DA Warner not out 103
Extras (lb3,w2) 5

Total (0 wickets; 21 overs) 148
Bowling
Z Khan 6- 0 -44 -0
U Yadav 6-0 -42 - 0
R Vinay Kumar 4 -0 -31 -0
I.Sharma 15-0-28-0