Many things have been written about Sachin Tendulkar over the years - his cricketing abilities place him amongst the very highest echelons of great cricketers, and his effect on an entire nation has made him one of the most talked-about cricketers ever. One question one is forced to ask is, what is his long-term effect on the game? In 20 years, or 40 years, will he still have an impression on the game that goes beyond the rheumy eyes of nostalgia?
Let us first consider the One-Day game. Yes, the One-Day game that was, not too long ago, the red-headed step-child of cricket, has been transformed in the last 20 years. Now, a genuine game in its own right, it has its own fluctuating strategies, its own "sessions", and its own lunch break.
Sachin is, together with Viv Richards, one of the two great batsman of the One-Day game. Sachin's effect on One-Day cricket will be remembered as long as they are still being played. Together with the Sri Lankan opening pair (Jayasuriya/Kaluwitharana), the Indian openers (Tendulkar/Ganguly) were instrumental in showing the world how to take advantage of the 15-over field restrictions. While scores of 50/0 were common in the first 15 overs up until the early 90s, soon scores of 90/2 started becoming par for the course. The idea was, even if one or two soldiers perish, a run-rate of 6.00 per over after 15 had already put you so far ahead of the game, that getting your average score of 240-odd became a canter. You now only had 150 runs to score in 35 overs.
This is an important effect Sachin's batting has had on the game - he has been the most successful One-Day opener ever, and his run-scoring abilities in the shorter form of the game will be hard to top. 17,598 runs at an average of 45, and a strike rate of 85 ... and counting. He will be the benchmark for all ODI batsmen to come.
Sachin's effect on the longer form of the game are harder to gauge. While he has played some unorthodox shots (the upper cut over the slips comes to mind), he has, by and large, stuck to the textbook. His back-foot punch (down the ground either side of the wicket) is something to behold, but he is not the inventor of the shot. He has merely adopted it very successfully, as have many others (like Gavaskar, which is probably where he learnt it from).
He has, together with other great batsmen of his era - Lara, Ponting, Kallis, Dravid, Steve Waugh - modernized the benchmark for a good middle-order batsman. Batsmen had to reacquaint themselves with quality spin bowling from 1993 onwards, and these batsmen definitely showed the way in that regard. Watching Lara vs. Murali or Sachin vs. Warne is an education in itself.
The last - but certainly not the least - piece of Sachin's legacy, will be his impression on Indian cricket. Sachin has been the iconic Indian cricketer for nearly two decades now. Gavaskar and Kapil were the largest icons in Indian cricket before him. While they were undoubtedly great cricketers, there was a lot of petty in-fighting which the discerning public did not like. Sachin has, together with Dravid and Kumble, brought to Indian cricket a certain humility and dignity that one feels was much needed (particularly in the wake of the match-fixing scandals in 2000).
Also, together with Gavaskar, Dravid, Laxman, Ganguly, and lately Sehwag, Sachin has ensured that the world has a very high regard for Indian batsmanship. In a recently concluded series against Australia, a certain Cheteshwar Pujara made his debut. In the previous series, Suresh Raina made his debut. Both of these were important events - and not just for India. Every time an Indian batsman makes his debut now, every cricket follower takes a moment to register the fact. Just to follow their careers a little more carefully. Just in case one of them turns out to be of the calibre of his illustrious predecessors.