In Sachin Tendulkar's case, however, the routine was something like this: Wake up at six, scoot to Shivaji Park for practice, bat in five different nets for approximately three hours, then play a match at any one of city's sprawling maidans, hit the nets again after the match, knock for a while and finally call it a day.
Batting has always remained Tendulkar's passion, age of course was just incidental. Watching movies, play hide and seek, hang around with friends didn't have a place in the little master's life.
For him, it was the maidans and the time he spent there honing his skills, that has taken Tendulkar where he is today.
"The one thing that stands out about Sachin is his passion to bat," recalls Mayur Kadrekar, Tendulkar's first captain in school.
"He used to bat in five different nets. And even after batting for three hours, he used to take throwdowns. The boys who threw balls at him used to tire, but he never got tired. Batting was his only love," Kadrekar adds.
With so much happening around them, youngsters can easily lose focus. The temptation to indulge can be a huge dampener. But batting was Tendulkar's only indulgence.
"He loved batting so much that he did not need any external drive or motivation. All he knew was to bat and he did not deviate one bit. He was so focused about his batting that when I look back, it seems unreal. The other inborn quality that Sachin possessed was tremendous stamina. In those days, there were no scientific methods like today. But he did not need any to enhance his fitness levels," Kadrekar recalls.
It is a well-known maxim that a person should give cent per cent in whatever he does. Mumbai coach Sulakshan Kulkarni reveals how Sachin focused on each delivery.
"What Sachin did right was that he knew exactly when to switch on and switch off. Sure, he trained hard and was extremely focused," Kulkarni says and cites an example. "If a bowler is on the top of his run up and takes about 15 strides to reach the popping crease, Sachin would give his 100 per cent attention when the bowler is about three steps away from delivering the ball. If you keep giving 100 per cent attention all the time, you tend to drain out fast. His match preparation is very scientific. He knows exactly what to do and when to do it. People keep wondering how he has managed to play for such a long time. I am convinced that Sachin has managed to keep going for such a long time because he knew when to give it his all. He used his resources judiciously."
"The fact that Sachin played so many matches helped him a great deal," recalls Mandar Phadke, former Ranji Trophy player and Tendulkar's batchmate at Shardashram.
"When we were 12 or 13, during the Diwali vacations, we played 24 matches in 24 days. It used to be very hot in October, but Achrekar sir insisted we play matches. So Sachin used to be at Shivaji Park one day, at Azad Maidan the other and at Matunga Gymkhana the following day. He has so many matches under his belt that he knows exactly what to do in a particular situation," Phadke notes.
Those close to Tendulkar stress on how sharp he is in the brain. Former opener Navjot Singh Siddhu, in fact, was quoted as saying: "His mind is like a computer. He stores data on bowlers and knows where they are going to pitch the ball."
Kadrekar who has played a lot of cricket with Tendulkar in his early days says: "Tendulkar has supreme cricketing acumen. He is a very good reader of situations. He knows exactly how to react," Kadrekar says.
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