Late goodbye:Is it the best time for Sachin to retire from International Cricket?

After scoring the much awaited 100^th 100 in international cricket, master blaster Sachin has started facing a common question from the media about his retirement from international cricket. This question seriously gained momentum after the comment from India’s 1983 World Cup winning captain Kapil Dev, as he said, “From what we have seen in the last three months, he (Sachin) should have announced his retirement after the World Cup or even earlier. It’s important to know that every cricketer has his time. Having served India for 22-23 years, there surely is no greater cricketer than him. But he should have announced his decision to retire from the shorter format soon after the World Cup,”

But Sachin has chosen to pay no attention to such questions about his performance and retirement plans. He might be skipping ODIs with regularity, but Sachin says he does not plan to quit the format altogether just yet and will continue as long as he enjoys the game. It is pretty obvious from his comments that he doesn’t pay any heed to any comments about his performances as he told said to the media ,”It’s not what XYZ think, it’s what I feel and as long as I am enjoying and I feel like being a part of it, I’ll continue (playing ODIs).”

Sachin has served Indian cricket for a very long time and has is a very bright example for all cricket lovers around the globe. The huge fan-followers are surely against his retirement, but it cannot be overlooked that team India has got some fantastic players who are ready to feature in the team. Sachin is also aware about this situation as he has decided to opt out of the Sri-Lanka tour.

When he was asked about his future plans, he stated, “See when the time comes I will start thinking about it. I have never thought that way. Each person thinks differently.”

Whatever his opinions are, the fact is that he is no longer a young man and with the pace with which cricket is changing, it might create a severe hindrance to him to perform. The main pillars of Indian cricket are Sachin, Sourav and Dravid. Sourav and Dravid have now retired and it is being said that it is the best time for Sachin to retire, as excessive Sachin dependence may put Indian cricket team in danger. But the fact is that Indian cricketers have proved their ability without Sachin a truckload of times and this may result in Sachin being just an option beside the regular players.

With the changing world, the mantra for international cricket has turned into “fast and furious”. Young newcomers have established their capabilities and Dhoni also supports giving new comers more than one chance, but it is for sure that selectors will not agree to keep a player like Sachin on the bench for a newcomer. So it seems that it is the best time for Sachin to retire when he is in the lime light.