New Delhi: Legendary Indian spinner Anil Kumble has come out in support of Sachin Tendulkar and hit out at the critics saying that it is not the time to criticise the maestro but support him.
"There have been instances when he has been the sole reason for India's wins, but he has never been the sole reason for India's losses. It is best to leave it to him to deal with what is in front of him now, because no one else has been in his position. No one else has played 192 Tests, made 34,000 runs, or scored 100 centuries. Let's not jump the gun, let's give the man the respect he deserves," Kumble wrote in a column for the 'Week' magazine.
"For 23 years, he has helped people dream, he has made them feel better emotionally. More's the reason why we need to give him his emotional space now," he wrote.
"This is the time for him to be left alone. He is such a great player that he doesn't need anyone else's advice on how to score runs. He just needs people to back off and allow him to work out what he needs to return to run-scoring ways, which I am confident he will.”
Kumble said that it is unfair to blame the team’s performance due to Sachin’s poor run because it the team that as a whole is going through a rough phase.
"For the first time, people are questioning his place in the team. The expectations are that he should retire because his performances over the last year or so haven’t matched the standards he has set over the previous 22 years. Yes, we have not seen the best of Sachin in this phase, but it is not just him alone. If you look at the overall picture, the team has struggled in Test cricket, so are we suggesting that India are still a one-man army, still totally dependent on Sachin? I think not," he said.
"The performances and the mindset of the Indian team are not helping Sachin any, either. India have won just three Tests in the last year, all at home, which probably has magnified his failures," wrote the former Indian skipper.
This is the time when you need to give him space for him to think about what he needs to rectify rather than put all kinds of negative thoughts in his mind. People are asking if it is time for him to go. That's a question people ask in India when you cross 30; the only difference is that in Sachin's case, it has come at 39."
Kumble however was confident that the master blaster will come out of it and that too on a strong note.
"At 39, it's more of a mental battle for a batsman while it is always a physical grind for a bowler, mind needs to be fresh and it doesn't help when the mind is bogged down by negative thoughts implanted by extraneous forces.
"The only issue with age is that no matter how fit you are, the recovery gets tougher and takes longer. But knowing Sachin for this long, I can say that he is exceptionally mentally tough and still does every physical routine to prepare himself for every Test. In all my years of playing and watching the game, I haven't seen anyone else adapt to conditions better or faster than Sachin."
By Indian Sports News Network