Guwahati: April 24 can be considered a historic day in the world of cricket, as it marks the birthday of cricketing legend, Sachin Tendulkar.
Sachin Tendulkar made his debut aged 16 years against Pakistan and, despite a bloodied nose and a few failures, Tendulkar became the greatest batsman since the days of Don Bradman.
The Maharashtra-born player, who turned 49 on Sunday, made his Test debut on November 15, 1989. In the same year on December 18, he played his first ODI match.
His father, Ramesh Tendulkar, a renowned Marathi novelist, was a big fan of the legendary musician Sachin Dev Burman. The batting great is an owner of many records during his playing career spanning two decades – 200 Tests, 100 international hundreds, 34357 international runs… You name them and he had them.
The legendary batter has the most number of runs in the longest format of the game, amassing 15,921 runs. Along the way, Tendulkar scored 51 Test centuries, the most by any player.
Apart from Test cricket, Sachin has created numerous records in the ODI format as well. He stands at the top of the list of most runs in ODI, with a total of 18,426 runs, including 49 tons and 96 half-centuries.
During his long career, the former batter represented India in six World Cups. He was also a part of the 2011 World Cup-winning squad.
He has also achieved a historic milestone of scoring 100 international tons and holds the record for registering the most centuries in Test and ODIs.
Sachin was last seen playing in Road Safety World Series in 2021, where he led India Legends to the title win. Currently, he is the mentor of the Indian Premier League franchise, Mumbai Indians.
Tendulkar was the first player to smash a double hundred in ODIs when he struck 200 not out off 147 balls against South Africa in Gwalior on February 24, 2010. He made a record six World Cup appearances, eventually ending up on the triumphant side in his last, in 2011 at the Wankhede stadium when India defeated Sri Lanka in the final.
Sachin played his final match — his 200th Test — at his home ground, the Wankhede stadium, in November 2013 when India hosted West Indies in a Test series. Tendulkar also played in the lucrative Indian Premier League for Mumbai Indians. In 78 matches, the master blaster scored 2334 runs with the help of one century and 13 fifties.
