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Sachin Tendulkar

India

Full name Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar

Born April 24, 1973, Bombay (now Mumbai), Maharashtra

Current age 36 years 212 days

Major teams India, Asia XI, Mumbai, Mumbai Indians, Yorkshire

Nickname Tendlya, Little Master

Batting style Right-hand bat

Bowling style Right-arm offbreak, Legbreak googly

Height 5 ft 5 in

Education Sharadashram Vidyamandir School

Batting and fielding averages

	Mat	Inns	NO	Runs	HS	Ave	BF	SR	100	50	4s	6s	Ct
Tests	160	263	28	12877	248*	54.79			43	53		51	103
ODIs	436	425	39	17178	186*	44.50	20022	85.79	45	91	1872	181	132
T20Is	1	1	0	10	10	10.00	12	83.33	0	0	2	0	1
First-class	262	414	44	21766	248*	58.82			70	99			171
List A	523	510	53	20730	186*	45.36			56	109			167
Twenty20	25	25	3	750	69	34.09	599	125.20	0	5	95	17	14

Bowling averages

	Mat	Inns	Balls	Runs	Wkts	BBI	BBM	Ave	Econ	SR	4w	5w
Tests	160	128	3976	2292	44	3/10	3/14	52.09	3.45	90.3	0	0
ODIs	436	267	8020	6817	154	5/32	5/32	44.26	5.10	52.0	4	2
T20Is	1	1	15	12	1	1/12	1/12	12.00	4.80	15.0	0	0
First-class	262		7341	4184	69	3/10		60.63	3.41	106.3		0
List A	523		10196	8445	201	5/32	5/32	42.01	4.96	50.7	4	2
Twenty20	25	8	93	123	2	1/12	1/12	61.50	7.93	46.5	0	0

Career statistics

Test debut	Pakistan v India at Karachi, Nov 15-20, 1989 scorecard
Last Test	India v Sri Lanka at Ahmedabad, Nov 16-20, 2009 scorecard
Test statistics
ODI debut	Pakistan v India at Gujranwala, Dec 18, 1989 scorecard
Last ODI	India v Australia at Guwahati, Nov 8, 2009 scorecard
ODI statistics
Only T20I	South Africa v India at Johannesburg, Dec 1, 2006 scorecard
T20I statistics
First-class debut	1988/89
Last First-class	India v Sri Lanka at Ahmedabad, Nov 16-20, 2009 scorecard
List A debut	1989/90
Last List A	India v Australia at Guwahati, Nov 8, 2009 scorecard
Twenty20 debut	South Africa v India at Johannesburg, Dec 1, 2006 scorecard
Last Twenty20	Delhi Daredevils v Mumbai Indians at Centurion, May 21, 2009 scorecard

Profile

Sachin Tendulkar has been the most complete batsman of his time, and arguably the biggest cricket icon as well. His batting is based on the purest principles: perfect balance, economy of movement, precision in stroke-making, and that intangible quality given only to geniuses, anticipation. If he doesn't have a signature stroke - the upright, back-foot punch comes close - it is because he is equally proficient in each of the full range of orthodox shots (and plenty of improvised ones as well) and can pull them out at will.

Though he has adopted a noticeably conservative approach in the last quarter of his career, there are no apparent weaknesses in Tendulkar's game. He can score all around the wicket, off both front foot and back, and has made runs in all parts of the world in all conditions.

Some of his finest performances have come against Australia, the overwhelmingly dominant team of his era. His century as a 19-year old on a lightning fast pitch at the WACA is considered one of the best innings ever to have been played in Australia. A few years later he received the ultimate compliment from the ultimate batsman when Don Bradman confided to his wife that Tendulkar reminded him of himself.

Blessed with the keenest of cricket minds, and armed with a loathing for losing, Tendulkar set about doing what it took to become one of the best batsmen in the world. This was after he was turned away from a fast-bowling camp in Chennai by Dennis Lillee.

Tendulkar's greatness was established early: he was only 16 when he made his Test debut. He was hit on the mouth by Waqar Younis but continued to bat, in a blood-soaked shirt. His first Test hundred, a match-saving one at Old Trafford, came when he was 17, and he had 16 Test hundreds before he turned 25. In 2000 he became the first batsman to have scored 50 international hundreds, and in 2008 he passed Brian Lara as the leading Test run-scorer and the first to 12,000 runs. He currently holds the record for most hundreds in both Tests and ODIs - remarkable, considering he didn't score his first ODI hundred till his 79th match.

Tendulkar's considerable achievements seem greater still when looked at in the light of the burden of expectations he has had to bear from his adoring but somewhat unreasonable followers, who have been prone to regard anything less than a hundred as a failure. The aura may have dimmed, if only slightly, as the years on the international circuit have taken their toll on the body, but Tendulkar remains, by a distance, the most worshipped cricketer in the world.
Sambit Bal October 2008

Notes

Wisden Cricketer of the Year 1997

Timeline

February 23-25, 1988
A monster in the making

Sachin Tendulkar, 14, and Vinod Kambli, 16 compile a 664-run unbroken partnership for Shardashram Vidyamandir against St Xavier's at Azad Maidan. Kambli makes 349 not out, Tendulkar 326 not out. It remains the highest partnership recorded in any form of cricket, until in November 2006 two schoolboys from Hyderabad - Manoj Kumar and Mohammad Shaibaz - overtake the record with an unbeaten 721-run partnership.

December 11, 1988
Truly first-class debut

At 15, scores an unbeaten century against Gujarat at the Wankhede Stadium to become the youngest Indian to make a hundred on first-class debut. Was picked after Bombay captain Dilip Vengsarkar watched him negotiate Kapil Dev in the nets.

December 14, 1989
Bloody-minded to start with

On the last day of the last Test of his first Test series, in Sialkot, gets hit on the nose by Waqar Younis - also in his first series. Falls down, gets up, and wipes away the gushing blood. Medical assistance is declined. Is eventually out for 57.

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Best Performances

119 not out v England, Old Trafford, 1990

England pile up 519 on a benign pitch, and India reply with 432. England stretch the lead to 407, and though the pitch is still good and the bowling (Malcolm, Fraser, Lewis, Hemmings) not terribly menacing, India find themselves in deep water at 127 for 5 with only one recognised batsman left. And he's only 17 years old. Tendulkar battles for nearly four hours, grimly but never dourly, and ends the day with 119. India lose only one more wicket, ending up with 343. With one more session, they might even have won.

114 v Australia, Perth, 1991-92

The fastest pitch in Australia has been reserved for the last Test. India have been beaten already, only humiliation awaits. Batting first, Australia score 346. Tendulkar enters at a relatively comfortable 100 for 3, but watches the next five wickets go down for 59. Tendulkar is the next man out... at 240. He has scored 118 of the 140 runs added while he is at the crease, and has made them in such an awe-inspiring manner that commentators are asking themselves when they last saw an innings as good.

169 v South Africa, Cape Town, 1996-97

Batting first, South Africa make a matchwinning 529.
Playing only for honour, India find themselves groveling before Donald, Pollock, McMillan and Klusener. Tendulkar and Mohammad Azharuddin get together at 58 for 5, and start spanking the bowling as if they were playing a club game in the park. They add 222 for the sixth wicket in less than two sessions, and Tendulkar has 26 boundaries in his score of 169. Even Donald says that he felt like clapping.

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Cricinfo picks - Our top articles on this player

The saint (Nov 1, 2003)
Mark 3 (Jun 1, 2006)
A ride with Sachin (Oct 1, 2004)
Sachin Tendulkar (1997)
Sachin Tendulkar: Man, myth or product of the times? (Oct 16, 2000)
A singular icon (Sep 1, 2002)
'The best batsman I've bowled to' (Sep 1, 2002)