Let me begin by saying that as far as batting is concerned, Sachin Tendulkar is and will always remain God. Not simply because of the records attached as a prefix to his name, but  because of the way he plays. The strokes he plays belong in an art exhibition. These strokes still flow from his brush as exquisitely as they used to, just not as regularly. I haven't seen the past greats play as I have Sachin. Nor have I had the opportunity to watch them practice, as I have the little master. There is no doubt that Sachin will work on the problem and come back and score runs. It only seemed like he played across the line to a full swinging delivery and nothing more. However, I do not want him to come back. I believe that Sachin Tendulkar should hang up his boots.

In one-day internationals he should have done it a year ago and in Tests, now is as good a time as any. This view has nothing to do with his performance. One look at his scores in the last 10 Test innings shows his performances have been quite decent, just not Tendulkaresque. They are as good if not better than what Gambhir and Sehwag have done. Are they getting old too?

Players	Runs	BF	HS	Avg	50/100	Bowled	Caught	Lbw
S Tendulkar	277	566	80	27.70	1/0	4	4	2
V Sehwag	283	331	67	28.30	2/0	2	8	0
G Gambhir	237	539	83	23.9	2/0	0	10	0

Whether or not Sachin's reflexes are slowing down is known only to him. The full swinging delivery being a problem is something every batsman concurs to. That is why bowlers are advised to bowl full...duh!

In limited-overs cricket, the Indian team has made quite a successful transition. It no longer relies on Sachin, or for that matter on any single individual. The team plays as one single unit. This team though, seems far more cohesive and united without Sachin Tendulkar. Sachin picking and choosing his games does not help the team in any way. It almost seems as if he is doing a favour to his fans by playing or the BCCI is doing a favour by letting him play. He still has it in him to play for at least another year, but if he truly wishes the team well, he should let that year be used to blood another youngster.

As far as Tests are concerned, I used to believe that the Indian team needs Sachin and perhaps I still do feel that a little. One reason for that is I still want to watch him bat. I want him to go on and on. Even that feeling is slightly reduced by the emergence of players like Hashim Amla, Virat Kohli, AB de Villiers etc. They play equally delectable shots. Most of me believes he should retire before India tours South Africa next year. I don't believe that India is still in that phase where they still need a certain player, to do well in a series, unless he is a bowler. India had all three greats when they toured England and Australia recently but still came back, well, with one butt cheek painted black and the other blue. Letting Rahane, Tiwary, Rohit Sharma or whoever the next number four is face up to Steyn and co in South Africa will only benefit the future of Indian cricket. Personally, so long as we put up a fight, a defeat against the current South African side is no disgrace. It would also hurt less if a bunch of youngsters without Sachin went and lost rather than with him. If these guys are taken to SA and not given a chance it would be a shame. In club cricket when a senior player who has no chance of representing the state eats up a spot, the youngsters despise him rather than respect him. If that were to happen with Sachin...

Another reason as pointed out by one of the writers is that Sachin loves the game so much that he may not necessarily know when the best time to retire is. Expecting someone to let go of what they love the most on their own is being too tough on him. But the BCCI cannot drop Sachin nor can it ask him to retire. 1.2 billion people might tear down the BCCI HQ. It still remains Sachin's decision and this article is an extremely personal opinion. He is still a great batsman and yet, he must go...