Legendary Indian batter Sachin Tendulkar bid adieu to the sport in 2013. It was his 200th Test match and he scored a brilliant half-century in his last innings. After the match, Tendulkar gave a farewell speech where he got emotional. Tendulkar was a huge figure in the dressing room and his absence was certainly a big hole to fill.
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Current India captain Rohit Sharma made his Test debut in the very same series and he also shared his views on Tendulkar’s departure. Sharma was quite emotional and said that the team will have to cope with the situation. Tendulkar was an inspirational figure in the backroom and used to help every member of the side.
Tendulkar once shared a brilliant story where he revealed that he got sentimental because of the presence of his mother in the stands. It was the first match when she was watching her son in the stadium.
The iconic Wankhede Stadium was absolutely jam-packed for the match and Tendulkar scored 74 runs before getting out against West Indies spinner Narsingh Deonarine’s delivery. Tendulkar didn’t get a chance to bat in the second innings as the visitors lost the match by an innings and 126 runs.
When an Emotional Rohit Sharma Reacted to Sachin Tendulkar’s Farewell Speech
Sharma agreed that the teammates will find it difficult to react to different conditions as they won’t have someone like Tendulkar anymore. The three-time ODI double centurion had insisted that he will think about Tendulkar’s retirement even after going home as it was a difficult pill to swallow for everyone.
“Just watching what was happening around me, I really did not know how to react. I was simply looking at him. We wanted to do something special for this very special man as we knew that this is the last time that we are seeing him in ‘Whites’. When I go home today, probably, it will be something that I will be thinking about,” Sharma had told reporters.
The series was a brilliant one for Sharma personally as he won the Player of the Series award. In two innings, he smashed a couple of magnificent hundreds. He scored 177 (301) in the first Test in Kolkata and followed it with 111 (127) in Mumbai.
Team India performance after Sachin Tendulkar’s retirement
After Tendulkar’s last match, Team India’s next five series were away from home. India lost four of them and managed to draw one. India could not win a single Test series played in 2014.
It was difficult for any single player to replace a player of class like Tendulkar. However, as a team, the Indian side has come a very long way since then. They have defeated Australia in Test series twice in their own backyard which had never happened before.
