This was no typical Aussie knee-jerk reaction in frustration. Instead, Lee's interruption (to shake Tendulkar's hand in congratulations for the double century) was humble acceptance of defeat to the man who was God of cricket.

God is always causelessly merciful. So the Aussie bowlers had hoped they could psyche or provoke God into throwing his wicket away again, in familiar act of mercy on bowlers.

The Transformation

With that stroke past mid-wicket, Tendulkar, however, confirmed he has decided to step down from the status of God -- Goddulkar, if you will -- to that of man, to be on par with other men in the team who have recently grown up from being boys.

Suddenly, India became a team of men. All men. Balance has been restored. Parity. Poetic justice.

Goddulkar confessed as much to the media after stumps. "I told myself in the morning that I am not going to get out today, come what may. So I kept on reminding myself about this. I left the balls that were too wide off the stumps well." Or something to that effect.

The Supreme God would be proud of this confession by His son, an act that could shame the worst criminals and sinners who had come clean.

Confession of Goddulkar

I say *confession* because Goddulkar's un-Tendulkaresque double century, bereft of the usual genius, brutal beauty and sublime poetry on pitch, shattered a long-standing myth.

And the myth was that Goddulkar cannot play under pressure, that he is not mentally strong, that intelligent and talented bowlers like McGrath can easily sort him out, that he is incapable of playing long and disciplined knocks.

Goddulkar himself had reinforced the myth over the years by getting out cheaply, repeatedly, to certain bowlers; for, it suited him. It cost the Indian team dearly, of course.

In other words, Goddulkar's confession is this: "I am capable of playing long and disciplined innings and I can curb my natural instincts whenever I want to. If I want, I can preserve my wicket for more than one full day."

Now we know what Goddulkar is capable of. It's no-one's case that Goddulkar's should get a century every time he walks out to bat. But if he gets out cheaply when India desperately needs a responsible knock from him, Indian cricket lovers can question his commitment to the team's cause. And that would be a very valid and legitimate question.

But why did Goddulkar throw away his wicket numerous times in the past when India needed him most? And what has brought about the transformation of Goddulkar to Tendulkar? To understand this, we need to rewind a bit.

Media to blame?

Remember the time when the media spun stories why Goddulkar is the only icon for a nation of one billion people, why he (many a time the baby of the team) was the only man in a team of bigger boys?

This sort of media focus proved a self-fulfilling prophecy. It disheartened other batsmen and gave Goddulkar an inflated opinion of himself.

To be fair, several other factors contributed to Goddulkar's inability in playing match-winning knocks in crucial games for India. The politics of captaincy, the general politics of team selection, intra-team politics proved too much of the rough and tumble of the real world for a youth just out of his teenage.

Riding sheer God-given talent and helped by men in the team who chose to step back into boyhood, the boy simply galloped several notches to the status of God. He liked the feeling.

Next page: Flashback: 1995-2000