There is, perhaps, no such thing as a perfect farewell. No parting gift at the Adelaide Oval on Monday for Adam Gilchrist on his last day as a Test cricketer, no final hurrah from Sachin Tendulkar in his last Test appearance in Australia.

India apart, nowhere is Tendulkar more revered, respected, adored and admired than in this country. Maybe it is to do with their insularity, but Australians aren't given to generous praise unless they are provided with a first-hand experience of sporting excellence. Tendulkar has done that repeatedly, over 17 years and four tours.

Class and experience

The class and experience of the little Mumbaikar was one of the primary reasons Anil Kumble's men completed the four-Test series heads held high. India did lose 1-2, but apart from the first Test in Melbourne, they were never disgraced. Indeed, they finished the series the stronger of the two teams; there is no gainsaying how things would have unravelled had umpiring decisions not reduced the Sydney Test to a fiasco, or indeed if India had managed to survive the last eight minutes and salvaged a draw.

Tendulkar's unshakeable bond with Australia began in 1991, on his first tour of this country. Still shy of his 19th birthday, he enchanted and entranced audiences across the nation with his courage and character, standing up to the big bad boys with consummate ease. His blistering century in Perth, the most treasured of his 39 Test tons, is still spoken about with awe by even past masters privileged enough to have witnessed that impeccable construction.

The legend of Sachin Tendulkar had been born in Australia then; over time, it has merely grown in magnitude and intensity.

Swelling fan club

On every subsequent tour, his fan club swelled considerably. In 1999-2000, saddled with a young side that was swept off the floor, Tendulkar held his own. Four years later, he shook off a forgettable series with a memorable double century at the SCG, notable not so much for dazzling strokeplay as discipline and intelligence as he turned a blind eye to the off-side, eschewing the drive and the cut that had been his undoing in previous games.

Characteristically, he had saved his best for last. For the better part of three years, Tendulkar had withdrawn into a shell of his own making, only occasionally emerging to reiterate his unalloyed genius. He did make runs, attractive runs, but the joy had seemingly gone out of his game. Suddenly, towards the middle of last year, the child in him resurfaced to replace the careful, studious adult that was willing to sacrifice flair for substance. The cricket world was, consequently, destined to be entertained again.

Pristine touch

In Australia this time, the 34-year-old has been in pristine touch. His lowest score in the first innings was 62 in the first MCG Test, followed up by knocks of 154 not out in Sydney, 71 in Perth and 153 in Adelaide. Each one was a gem; for sheer brilliance and aesthetics, the MCG knock remained the benchmark, though the rest were no less exceptional.

It is hard to fault someone who finished the series as the highest run-getter from both teams -- 493 from eight innings at 70.42 -- but Tendulkar himself will be the first to admit that his second-innings efforts were woefully below par.

As opposed to 440 first-innings runs, he mustered a miserable 53 in the second; 15, 12, 13 and 13 were all he managed, continuing his run of low scores in second innings against Australia. Especially galling must have been his lowest score of the series, in the second innings in Sydney; if only he had managed a few more and batted out a few more minutes!

Mere footnote

Saying that, his second-innings failures will remain a mere footnote, pailing into nothingness compared to the joy and meaning his first-innings successes provided. Australians knew they were privileged to have seen the ageing master at his very best, unshackled either by the passage of time or the quality of the opposition bowling with Brett Lee in brilliant form.

The Tendulkar-Lee battles throughout the series were absorbing, neither willing to blink. One man at the peak of his powers, the other still the complete package despite 18 years of international cricket. The irresistible force versus the immovable object. Test cricket at its sublime best.

Mitchell Johnson's direct hit to dismiss Tendulkar, run out, drew gasps of disappointment from 11,000 fans at the Oval.

There was no going-away gift, but the rousing reception all the way back only proved that the Tendulkar aura will remain intact in Australia. Forever.