Sachin Tendulkar is a god in India, a phenomenal player, says Australia's new batting sensation Mathew Hayden.

Australia's most successful batsman in the just-concluded series in India, Hayden wrote in a newspaper today, "His (Tendulkar's) life seems to be a stillness in a frantic world and I admire his mental strength. He is a phenomenal player".

When Tendulkar goes out to bat, wrote Hayden, "It is beyond chaos - it is a frantic appeal by a nation to one man".

Tendulkar "seems like a spiritually rich individual, a solid human being; quite reserved and thoughtful to speak to. The people of India see him as a god," the left-handed opener wrote, adding "(Australian captain) Stephen Waugh is almost a god here, but Sachin is a god and people believe good luck shines in his hand".

Summing up his admiration for the Indian genius, Hayden quoted a Paul Kelly song about Sir Donald Bradman: "He was more than just a batsman, He was something like a tide."

© PTI