NEW DELHI, Oct 5 (PTI): Sachin Tendulkar has for the first time admitted that at 39 he may not have much cricket left in him and will reassess his cricketing future next month.
Tendulkar�s retirement has been a topic of debate for quite some time now and the batting great said though he does not have any immediate plans, the thought of retirement has been on his mind.
He said that taking a decision on retirement after playing the game for close to 23 years will be a �hard one� and he will go by what his heart says.
�The moment of retirement is going to be hard because I haven�t experienced anything close to what I might go through when I retire. It depends on what my heart tells me then. I need not take a call right now. When I play in November, I will reassess things,� he said.
�I am 39 and I don�t think I have plenty of cricket left in me. But it depends on my frame of mind and my physical ability to deliver. When I feel that I am not delivering what is needed, and then I will re-look at the scheme of things. I am already 39 and no one expects me to go on playing forever,� Tendulkar told �Times NOW�.
India play a four-match home Test series against England starting on November 15 in Ahmedabad.
Tendulkar, who holds almost all the records in world cricket after playing 190 Tests and 463 ODIs, said that it would be a tough call for him to hang his bat and he will go by what his heart says.
�I don�t know. It is going to be hard because I haven�t experienced anything close to what I might go through when I retire. I cannot relate this moment with any other moment in my life. It will be a tough call. I will go with what my heart says,� said Tendulkar, who has scored 15,533 in Tests and 18,426 runs in ODIs.
�But I am still the best judge of what happens to my mind and body. When I feel it is time, I will take a call. It is going to be a tough call nevertheless. It is going to be tough because this is what I have been doing all my life. It is going to be difficult to suddenly hang my boots one day,� Tendulkar said. The champion batsman also said he has been thinking about the moment of retirement for some time.
�Of course, I have been (thinking about it). I am 39 plus and it is not abnormal for me to think of it. At that moment, I will go by what my heart says. At this moment, my heart says I am okay. But you will have to look at series by series.�
One of his most cherished dreams was realised last year when India won the 50-over World Cup. Asked if he was game for competing in the 2015 edition, Tendulkar ruled out the possibility.
�At this stage, I don�t think it is possible. I am being very honest and straightforward. I am going series by series because it is also about what the team feels and what I feel inside...Whether I have the motivation to continue,� he said.
Asked if he was pushing himself too hard to stay competitive and in top form at this stage of career, Tendulkar said, �I have always been pushing myself, for the last 22 years and more, to play for India. It had always been a dream. There is no reason why I should not be pushing myself too hard. In fact, if I don�t, then you should question me on why I am not pushing myself hard enough.
