Chennai: Sachin Tendulkar's sporting act of walking despite the umpire giving him not out, is the talk of the town. Everyone had only one question: "Would anyone have walked, especially when you are on the verge of a great milestone?
Some felt he should not have walked as he has on many occasions been a victim of poor umpiring. Australian skipper Ricky Ponting, who is on a hot chase of many of Tendulkar's records, said in Colombo: "I wait for the umpire to give me out. That's the way I have always played the game." Ponting's comment was welcomed by a large number of fans here.
Not too many players have walked when the stakes have been high. Many remember the number of ‘walkers', as they are called, has decreased. After Adam Gilchrist, only Jacques Kallis has been carrying on that tradition. Umpire V.K. Ramaswamy, India's first "neutral" umpire, said: "Tendulkar has always walked. He is an honest cricketer who believes in upholding the spirit of the game." After G.R. Vishwanath hung up his boots, India had few batsmen who would walk. When Yuvraj Singh was asked for his opinion, he said: "I am not surprised. He felt that he has to walk and he walked. It is a personal decision. It should be left to the person concerned."
West Indies skipper Darren Sammy showered praise on Tendulkar's decision and said: "It was brilliant to see him walk."
[/img][/COLOR]
