Sachin Tendulkar - The Ton Machine by Sam R

Sachin Tendulkar: The Ton Machine All You Wanted to Know about the Journey of Cricketâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Unlimited Records Creator

Dedicated to the Billion Fans of this Game of Cricket

Sam Rodrigues

SS Publications PDF format | Version: 1.0

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Sachin Tendulkar: The Ton Machine

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Contents Introduction

Section 1  Childhood & Cricket Beginnings

Section 2  Professional Career  Early Professional Career  Career Peak  Low Period  Return to Dominance

13 16 24 29

Section 3  Facts and Figures  Records at a Glance  The other side of Sachin

33 38 43

Bibliography & Credits

Acknowledgements

Introduction In the state of Maharashtra in India, sits the most populated city in all of India. In 1973, the future God of Cricket was born a mere mortal to a middle-class family like any other. Growing up in Bombay, now called Mumbai, Sachin Tendulkar rose to become one of the best cricket players in the world in a country all-consumed by the sport of bats and balls—where every little boy aspires to be a great cricket player. Today, Tendulkar merits nicknames like ―The Little Master‖, ―The Master Blaster‖ and ―The Ton Machine‖ but none other is more befitting than calling him ―The God of Cricket World‖ as the people of India have dubbed him and cricket fans all over the world exclaim with passion when this living legend takes the field. Sachin Tendulkar today, has redefined not only the art of run-getting but the whole game of cricket itself with a spree of unlimited records. He can easily be called the ―King of Records‖ and possibly has every such record that a batsman would ever aspire to create in this game of cricket. Such is the Art of his cricketing… Such is the Science in his cricketing. A Billion fans worship him and pray for him in this cricket crazy nation called India. Yes, if cricket is a religion here, Sachin undoubtedly is its God!!

Section 1

Childhood and Cricket Beginnings On April 24, 1973, Sachin Tendulkar was born to Rajni and Ramesh Tendulkar. His mother took a job working in the insurance industry, while his father dedicated his life to continuing the Marathi literary tradition as a Marathi novelist. Tendulkar has an older brother named Ajit and two younger siblings, brother Nitin and sister Savita. Family has always been a very important part of Sachinâ&#x20AC;&#x2DC;s life and the biggest influence to his success in deeply spiritual and emotional ways.

Sachin Tendulkar: The Ton Machine

Like most young boys in India, Sachin was fascinated by cricket from an early age and began playing with friends during his childhood. As a child, Sachin played cricket just for fun and as a way to expend energy. It wasn‘t until Sachin‘s older brother Ajit saw something special in his younger brother and told Sachin that he should pursue cricket professionally. Fans of cricket and of Sachin Tendulkar owe a great deal to Ajit. If Sachin had not had the motivation from his brother to pursue cricket as a career, the world may not have ever met The God of Cricket. Instead of just sitting back and watching his talented brother play without direction, Ajit took the first steps toward developing Sachin‘s natural talent for cricket and turning it into the greatness that it is today. When Sachin was just entering high school, his brother, Ajit, took him to meet the man, who would coach and develop his talent during the first few important years of Sachin‘s serious cricket playing: Coach Ramakant Achrekar. It was during his time at Sharadashram Vidyamandir High School that Sachin trained with Achrekar. Sachin holds coach Achrekar as a life-long mentor and inspiration for his dedication to the sport. When he was beginning to train seriously during his school years, Sachin attended the MRF Pace Foundation because he had dreams of becoming a great fast bowler. This foundation runs a clinic that trains aspiring cricket players that specifically want to focus on becoming skilled bowlers. Sachin‘s intentions were right - he was pursuing a dream of his…but it turns out that he was not meant to be a bowler, and 8

Sachin Tendulkar: The Ton Machine

that fact would show itself during his time at the MRF Pace Foundation. While at the bowler‘s clinic, Sachin met yet another person along his journey that would influence his future success in a major way. As Sachin was demonstrating his skills as a fast bowler, his trainer Dennis Lillee, one of the best fast bowlers of his time, saw very little to be impressed about and instantly knew that Sachin was not meant to be a fast bowler. Lillee contended that Sachin could be an even better cricket player if he dedicated his training to becoming a batsman and bluntly told him so. Due to Lillee‘s honesty, Sachin refocused his energy, returned to school and trained as a batsman under his coach Ramakant Achrekar. As a teenager just entering high school, Sachin was still a bit immature and lacking discipline. That‘s where Sachin‘s first mentor, Coach Achrekar, truly began influencing Sachin‘s development as a cricket player. As a young teenager, Sachin would spend many tedious hours practicing batting in the school nets. Coach Achrekar saw real talent and possibility in the young Sachin and, so, he would not allow Sachin to give-in to his exhaustion even after many hours of training. Coach Achrekar did this to demonstrate to Sachin how we must endure the pain of sacrifice for the dreams we have. When Sachin was too fatigued to continue practicing, his coach would place a one-rupee coin at the top of the stump on the wicket. If Sachin allowed the bowler to dismiss him, that bowler would win the one-rupee coin; if Sachin could hold-off the bowler for the entire session, he would win the rupee coin for himself.

Sachin Tendulkar: The Ton Machine

This unusual training method truly motivated Sachin to be better. At the age of 13, Sachin already showed great promise with his run numbers in school play. He averaged a whopping 1034 runs per match in school cricket. While playing at Sharadashram Vidyamandir School, Sachin and his good friend Vinod Kambli, who would later, also represent India, scored a world recordbreaking 664 runs. Sharadashram School was playing against St. Xavier‘s School during a Lord Harris Shield inter-school match when Tendulkar and Kambli broke 664 runs against a team that was reportedly brought to tears by the unrelenting pair. Coach Achrekar had to intervene and force Tendulkar and Kambli to declare when they reached 664 runs. Sachin said, many years after the inter-school match with St. Xavier‘s School, that while they were playing he pretended not to see Coach Achrekar standing on the field yelling for them to declare the match because he didn‘t want to stop playing. Who knows how many runs he and Kambli would‘ve been able to reach that day if it wasn‘t for Coach Achrekar insisting on them declaring the match. Today, we see how Sachin‘s early cricket playing reflects his character as a player and explains how he has come to be a living legend in the sport. The one-rupee coin represented failure and every time he allowed the bowler to dismiss him, he could see the immediate, tangible consequences: he would lose the rupee coin forever. As a professional, Sachin plays every match like he is protecting some invisible rupee coin and he will play as hard as it takes to defend and keep the coin that is rightfully his. Today, Sachin credits the lessons of Coach Achrekar as some of the most important things he has ever been taught.

Sachin Tendulkar: The Ton Machine

He still has 13 one-rupee coins that he won during those intense practice sessions with Coach Achrekar. Even with all of the success he has had, Sachin still says that he considers those 13 coins to be one of the most valuable things he owns. By the very young age of 15, Sachin was already thought of as a child prodigy in Mumbai. The year before, when Sachin was 14, he led the Under 17 team of Mumbai to win the Sports Star Trophy in 1987. During the 1987 World Cup, Sachin worked as a ball boy at the India versus Zimbabwe game. There, Sunil Gavaskar, a former batsman for India, presented Sachin with a pair of his very own ultra light pads as a gift. Sachin has said of that day that Gavaskar‘s gift was very encouraging to him. Undoubtedly, this was a pivotal moment for young Sachin as he was about to embark on one of the best years of his young cricket career. Sachin eventually beat Gavaskar‘s record of 34 centuries almost two decades later. Around the city of Mumbai, people talked about the talented right-handed batsmen. The name Sachin Tendulkar was on everyone‘s mind. They began to wonder if Sachin would become one of the greats in cricket because at his debut first-class match on December 11, 1988, where Bombay played Gujarat, Sachin became not only the first Indian ever to score a century during his debut match, he was also the youngest cricket player in the world ever to do it. To follow his early record-breaking success, Sachin scored another century. This time, it was during his first Deodhar and Duleep Trophy. Again, Sachin had unprecedented success when he had an unbeaten century in the Irani Trophy final.

Sachin Tendulkar: The Ton Machine

Still today, Sachin is the only player in the world to have scored a century in all three debuts at the Ranji Trophy, Deodhar and Duleep Trophy and Irani Trophy. His first season ended with Sachin as Bombayâ&#x20AC;&#x2DC;s highest run-scorer and led Raj Singh Dungarpur to choose him to go on the Indian tour of Pakistan that would be held the following year in 1989. That tour marked Sachinâ&#x20AC;&#x2DC;s international cricket debut.

Section 2

Professional Career Early Professional Career At the age of 16, Sachin played his first Test match in Karachi, Pakistan on November 15, 1989, where India played Pakistan. He is the youngest player to have played for India at the Test level. This first match cemented Sachin as one of the up-andcoming cricket players in the world as he proved that, even at such a young age, he could compete and easily hold his own against established cricketers like Waqar Younis, Imran Kahn, Wasim

Sachin Tendulkar: The Ton Machine

Akram and Abdul Qadir. Although he only scored 15 runs during the match, Sachin impressed the crowds and his fellow teammates by showing his maturity and discipline. In the match against Pakistan, Sachin was bowled by Waqar Younis, but he didn‘t have to impress others with his scoring ability to leave a mark on their minds. Sachin suffered numerous painful blows to his body by the Pakistani attack team and, yet, he refused to leave the match and was hailed afterward for handling the pain with such poise and humility. At the final test match of the series in Sialkot, Sachin was struck so hard in the face by a ball that had taken a bad bounce off the ground that he began pouring blood from his nose. This didn‘t bother the determined fighter; he refused medical attention and kept on batting while blood covered his face and soiled his uniform. Sachin was able to produce 53 runs from 18 balls during a 20 over exhibition match during the Pakistan series that was held in Peshawar. During one over, Sachin scored 28 runs against Abdul Qadir – an innings that the Indian captain, Kris Srikkanth, called ―one of the best innings [he] has ever seen.‖ Sachin was dismissed without scoring a run only once during the Test series, which occurred at the only One Day International he participated in (December 18, 1989), which was also his One Day International debut (ODI). Overall in the Test series, Sachin scored 215 runs, with an average of 35.83. Next, Sachin embarked on a tour of New Zealand. It was not incredibly remarkable but, considering Sachin‘s young age, he was on the right track to becoming one of cricket‘s greatest players. During the tour of New Zealand, Sachin scored 88 in the second Test match and was impeded from hitting his first century in Test cricket—an accomplishment that would have made Sachin 14

Sachin Tendulkar: The Ton Machine

the youngest centurion in Test cricket—by the New Zealander John Wright. Interestingly, John Wright would later coach the Indian National Cricket Team from 2000 to 2005. During his tour in New Zealand, Sachin scored 117 runs total and averaged 29.25 per game. In addition, Sachin was able to produce 36 runs during one of the One Day Internationals he played. Unfortunately, he was dismissed without scoring a run at the second One Day International he played while on tour in New Zealand. All of Sachin‘s international experience was preparing him for the exorbitant amount of success that was imminent. The next chance Sachin had to make his mark on the cricketing world came in 1990 when he embarked on a tour of England. While on tour in England, the Indian team played against England at Old Trafford. There, he scored 119 runs in one match and became the second youngest player to score a Test century. It was, of course, one of the best moments in Sachin‘s career because it was the first Test century he produced. Wisden Cricketer‘s Almanack said of Sachin‘s first Test century in England that he put on a ―disciplined display of immense maturity‖ during the match. Wisden also states that Sachin was wearing the ultra light pads that Gavaskar had presented him with as a gift at the age of 14—and he played on the level of Gavaskar as well. Sachin was also complemented on his impressive off side shots from his back foot and the wide range of his strokes. Gavaskar‘s pads seem to be a good luck charm. England is, traditionally, a tough match for the Indian team. From his first visit as a cricketer in 1990, Sachin has over 1,000 runs on English soil. From 1990 to 2007, he competed in 13 Test matches for 22 innings. His total runs earned against England are 1,302 with an average of 62 per match.

Sachin Tendulkar: The Ton Machine

Sachin played a remarkable test match in England where he scored 193 runs. Overall, in Test matches, Sachin has earned four hundreds and six fifties on his tours of England. As far as One-Day Internationals in England, Sachin played 26 of them in the time period 1990-2007. During that time, he scored 1051 runs and averaged a total of 43.79 and scored three hundreds and six fifties. His best run total at an ODI match in England is 140 runs. England holds a special place in Sachin‘s heart. Many of his greatest cricketing moments have happened in England. Sachin had his first Test century on his first tour (and trip) to England, where he scored 119 runs, at Old Trafford in 1990. This momentous achievement at just, 17 years and 112 days old, skyrocketed Sachin‘s career in cricket and foreshadowed many years of equal success. Sachin holds England dear for another reason. During the 1999 Cricket World Cup in England, Sachin‘s father, Ramesh Tendulkar, died suddenly. Sachin missed the match against Zimbabwe in order to attend his father‘s funeral service back in India. Although he had been hit with an emotional load, Sachin returned to Bristol immediately following his father‘s funeral to play in the very next match against Kenya. The match was a very symbolic and emotional one as Sachin scored a century (140 off 101 balls) and dedicated the accomplishment to his late father. Career Peak The 1991-1992 season, was Sachin‘s break-through year in cricket. He had arguably one of the best seasons of his career at the tour of Australia he embarked on in 1991.

Sachin Tendulkar: The Ton Machine

Sachin looked like he was coming into his own on the field, now he was fully comfortable with his position on his team and with his repertoire of skills. Sachin had one of the best matches of his career on tour in Australia. He scored a still unbeaten 148 run century at Sydney and then went on to produce a brilliant century in Perth. He is the youngest cricketer to ever score a century on Australian soil. The track at Perth is notoriously bouncy and fast, making his century all the more impressive and indicative of the possibility of success that young Sachin had ahead of him. Twice, Sachin was named Man of the Series in the Border-Gavaskar trophy against Australia. The next year, Sachin and his Indian teammates embarked on a tour of South Africa. The 1992-1993 seasons brought new records and stellar achievements for Sachin. From November 1992 to January 1993, India battled South Africa in four Test matches, where South Africa came out victorious. In Johannesburg, when he was just 19 years old, Sachin scored 111 runs during the second of four Test matches against South Africa to become the youngest players to achieve 1000 Test runs. This tour marked the first time that India faced South Africa. In 1994, Sachin achieved another milestone in his cricketing career. On September 9, 1994, he scored a century in Sri Lanka at Colombo against Australia. This marked his first ODI century, after having played 79 ODI matches without being able to reach the elusive century. It seemed that when Sachin had a few major milestones under his belt, his career lifted off and he was at his best. From 1994-1999 Sachin was in his prime physically and it showed in his

Sachin Tendulkar: The Ton Machine

intensity on the field, which was reflected in his numbers throughout those five years.

Sachin celebrating after making his 38th Test century in Sydney on January 4, 2008

In 1994, Sachin opened the batting against New Zealand in Auckland. In that match he went on to score 82 runs off 49 balls. It only took a few more matches before Sachin scored a century during an ODI match. 18

Sachin Tendulkar: The Ton Machine

The following year, in 1995, Sachin was rated the number 1 batsman in the world by the well-known Coopers and Lybrands ratings. Coopers and Lybrands bestowed that honor on Sachin once again during his 1998 season. In 1996, the CEAT cricket ratings had Sachin as the number 1 batsman in the world. That same year, Sachin served as captain of the Indian team at the young age of 23. At the 1996 World Cup, Sachin was the leading run scorer and produced two centuries. During the World Cup semi-final match held in Eden Gardens, Kolkata on March 3, 1996, Sachin was the only Indian to bat. The Indian team was facing Sri Lanka in the first semi-final round. When the Indian team had fallen to 120 for 8 against the Sri Lankan team, which had 251 for 8 in the 35th over, the crowd of around 110,000 people began reacting to the demise of their beloved Indian team. Fruit and plastic bottles were thrown from the stands by the aggravated fans. In an attempt to pacify the crowd, the Indian team took a 20-minute break off the field. When they returned to play, the crowdâ&#x20AC;&#x2DC;s reaction was even more aggressive: people began lighting small fires in the stands and hurling bottles and other objects onto the field. When the crowds could not be controlled, the semi-final match was awarded to Sri Lanka by match referee Clive Lloyd. Sachin finished the match with 65 runs. This is the first default ever during a Test or One Day International match. Sri Lanka went on to win the World Cup that year. When the World Cup was over, the Indian team played Pakistan in Sharjah. During the match, Sachin and his teammate Navjot Singh Sidhu both scored a century, making it a record partnership. Indiaâ&#x20AC;&#x2DC;s captain, Mohammed Azharuddin, had not been 19

Sachin Tendulkar: The Ton Machine

playing well during the match, though. When he consulted Sachin about whether he should bat, Sachin motivated him to not back down and take the bat. Azharuddin went on to score 29 runs off 10 balls; his contribution to the team led to an Indian victory and another world record. India scored over 300 runs during the match and became the record holders for most runs scored in an ODI match. In 1997, Wisden named Sachin one of the best cricketers of the year. As his batting skills were improving tremendously, Sachin began putting on a skill show for the mesmerized fans that watched him score century after century. Both in 1996 and 1997, Sachin scored over 1,000 runs in the calendar year. The following year truly showed Sachinâ&#x20AC;&#x2DC;s batting maturity and skill development. Again, Sachin produced over 1,000 runs in the calendar year of 1998. In early 1998, the Indian team embarked on a tour of Australia that resulted in Sachin scoring three centuries in a row. The way that Sachin started out the year set him up to take over the batting world. Sachinâ&#x20AC;&#x2DC;s three consecutive centuries came in three very intense games for the Indian batsman. He purposely intended to charge down the pitch to drive over the infield against Australian spinners Shane Warne and Gavin Robertson. His aggressive methods worked and not only ended in triple centuries, but in three victories for the Indian team. The third victory came in a finals match; Sachin basically carried his team to a victory single-handedly. Not only did Sachin dominate as a batsmen, he also contributed to his team on the other side of the ball. He produced a five-wicket haul just as the Australian team was prepared to win the game and stole the victory at the last minute. Sachinâ&#x20AC;&#x2DC;s 20

Sachin Tendulkar: The Ton Machine

commitment and passion for winning is evident in his ability to change the fate of his team and will them to a win. Sachin alone was responsible for winning the quarterfinal ICC match in 1998 against Australia at Dhaka. After having scored 141 runs, Sachin took four Australian wickets and guaranteed a spot for his team in the semifinals. On June 23, 1998, Sachin won the Coopers and Lybrand Award for being the best Test cricketer of the year (previous twelve months). CricInfo, the largest cricketing website in the world received an astounding 40% vote for Sachin as the best Test cricketer of the year when they conducted a survey. Sachinâ&#x20AC;&#x2DC;s 18th ODI century came on September 26, 1998. He surpassed the previous ODI century record of 17 that was held by Desmond Haynes. Just under two months later, on November 8th, Sachin achieved one of the biggest feats of his cricketing career. When he scored his 20th century on November 8th, he broke the record for most centuries in International cricket, which consists of Test and ODI matches, with a combined 36 centuries. The previous record was 35 centuries. In February and March of 1999, the first ever Asian Test Championship was held. The Indian team attended along with long-time competitors Sri Lanka and Pakistan. The tour was ultimately unsuccessful. It began in Eden Gardens in Kolkata with Sachin being shut out for nine after he suffered a collision with Pakistan bowler Shoaib Akhtar. Because the match was being held in India, the crowd grew very aggravated that their star player had been dismissed and started throwing objects on the field, similar to the incidents of the 1996 World Cup, also held at Eden Gardens in Kolkata.

Sachin Tendulkar: The Ton Machine

To avoid a default due to the disruptive and unruly crowd, Sachin and the president of the ICC appealed to the crowd so they could resume the match. Because many fans couldnâ&#x20AC;&#x2DC;t control themselves, the match had to be finished with only about 200 fans in the stands.

Sachin reassuring his teammate during a match Although the match ended in a draw, on February 19, 1999, Sachin reached 5,000 runs. At this point in his career, Sachin had reached 5,000 runs, 18 centuries, 20 fifties and an astounding average of 53.19 runs per match. Then, on February 28th, Sachin scored his 19th Test century. Unfortunately, in the Asia Test Championship India could not make it to the finals. In March, Pakistan toured India. This was a difficult time in Sachinâ&#x20AC;&#x2DC;s cricketing career and marked the start of a decline in 22

Sachin Tendulkar: The Ton Machine

his physical health as a chronic back problem began to cause more issues for the star. Although Sachin was able to dig up a century individually, his team fell apart and was unable to win at the historic Test match at Chepauk. Sachin flew to England on March 9, 1999 to be treated for back spasms he had been suffering with during the matches against Pakistan the previous month and for an ongoing back problem. Because he was receiving treatment, Sachin had to skip the Pepsi tri-series in India and the Coca-Cola Cup in Sharjah. He had very little time to prepare for the World Cup just a few months later. Sachin‘s luck seemed to be running out when a major hurdle was put in his way in his father‘s untimely death. To most people, this would be enough reason to give up. Not for the God of Cricket. Immediately after returning from his father‘s funeral in India, Sachin scored an amazing 140 run century against Kenya in the World Cup. He received the Man of the Match award that day. Shortly thereafter, Sachin replaced Mohammed Azharrudin as team captain for a second time. He initially took over as captain in 1996 but he was not having much success as captain. His first task was in the Indian tour of Australia. There, Sachin was unable to lead his team to a victory and eventually gave the position back to Azharrudin until he was selected as captain, again, on July 28, 1999 by the National Selection Committee. Sachin held the position of captain for one year until he resigned and Sourav Ganguly took over as captain after the Indian team suffered a losing season against South Africa in 2000. Although Sachin is undoubtedly one of the greatest, if not the best batsman, in the world, he is not a born captain. The lesson that Sachin demonstrates in how he‘s handled his attempts at being captain is that one should be honest with the 23

Sachin Tendulkar: The Ton Machine

strengths that you have while also being able to recognize your faults. Sachin recognized that, while he is an integral and vocal member of the team, he is a better teammate than captain. Sachin produced his first test double century when he scored 217 runs against New Zealand on November 2, 1999. This time with a teammate, Sachin broke another world record while playing against New Zealand. On November 8, Sachin and teammate Dravid score an unprecedented 331 runs between them in the 2nd ODI, beating the partnership record of 318 runs previously held by Dravid and Ganguly. Low Period Throughout 2001 and 2002, Sachin continued to play well and keep up his former standard of play, yet he saw some apparent decline in his performance. In 2001, the Indian team competed against Australia in the Kolkata Test. During the final match of the series, Sachin made wickets against two players that had scored centuries in the previous test: Matthew Hayden and Adam Gilchrist. Sachin‘s contribution away from the bat contributed to his team‘s comeback and eventual success in that series. Another match against Australia just a few weeks after the Border-Gavaskar Trophy brought more record-breaking results for Sachin. On March 31, 2001, Sachin became the first batsman that, in limited overs cricket, scored 10,000 runs. The match was played in Indore, India. The following year brought a dry period in Sachin‘s career. At the tour of the West Indies in 2002 Sachin performed uncharacteristically poorly with the bat. The series started out like most of Sachin‘s previous matches; he scored 76 runs in the first

Sachin Tendulkar: The Ton Machine

Test and followed it with 117 runs in the first innings of the second Test. The second Test, though, came to an end with a surprising series of dry innings. In the next four innings, Sachin‘s scores were 0, 0, 8, and 0. Although India lost the series, Sachin brought his production up closer to what he was used to during the last Test against the West Indies team by scoring 41 and 86. During the series, Sachin equaled Sir Donald Bradman‘s record of 29 Test centuries. In 2003, Sachin joined the Indian team at the Cricket World Cup. There, he was a major force that pushed the Indian team to the finals against Australia, although the Australian team came out on top to claim the World Cup like they had in 1999. Sachin scored 673 runs over the course of 11 matches and reached 12,000 ODI runs on March 1st while playing against Pakistan. No other cricket player in history had reached over 10,000 ODI runs in their career that time. The finals match against Australia was uncharacteristically bad for Sachin. The Indian team lost to the Australians by 125 runs; a probable cause of the team‘s defeat was that Sachin was knocked out after the first over after sending a pull shot in the air, only to be caught and bowled by Glenn McGrath. Although Sachin did not perform as well as he had in previous years, he was honored with the Man of the Tournament Award. Many people consider the period between 2002 and 2006 as one of decline in Sachin‘s athletic performance. Luckily, though, those years of poor performance would be redeemed beginning in 2007. The 2003/2004 season only added to the rumors that Sachin was headed toward a decline that he would never be able to get out of. On an Indian tour of Australia, the 2003 season began 25

Sachin Tendulkar: The Ton Machine

in a negative way: Sachin failed in six innings during the first three Test matches of the series with an unprecedented lack of form.

Sachin playing his classy shots Sachin ended the 2003 calendar year with his worst Test cricket numbers of his career. He averaged a mere 17.25 runs and scored only one fifty during the entire year. He bounced back from his unusually terrible string of matches when, in January of 2004, he scored an impressive 241 not out during the following Test match of the series, held in Sydney. The 2004 calendar year was comparably better than the results of 2003. During a Test match in Pakistan, Sachin had scored 194 runs when Indian captain, Rahul Dravid, declared the match before Sachin reached 200 runs. If Sachin had reached 200, it would have been his fourth Test double century. After the match, Sachin showed his frustration with Dravidâ&#x20AC;&#x2DC;s decision. The controversy was later cleared up when Dravid stated that the matter had been spoken about during the match and that an agreement had been reached. Although Sachin suffered from tennis elbow for the majority of 2004 and was unable to compete for most of the year, 26

Sachin Tendulkar: The Ton Machine

he achieved one major milestone prior to falling to the injury: he completed 13,000 ODI runs during the second Test against Pakistan in Rawalpindi. When he was healthy enough to compete again, Sachin was able to contribute to the last two Test matches during the Indian tour of Australia in 2004. In Mumbai, Sachin produced 55 runs that pushed the Indian team to a victory, although the series ultimately went to the Australians. On his 122nd test on March 16, 2005, Sachin surpassed 10,000 test runs at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata. Sachin joins Allan Border, Sunil Gavaskar, Steve Waugh and Brian Lara as the fifth batsman ever to score 10,000 runs in test cricket. On December 10, 2005, Sachin broke another world record by producing his 35th Test century against Sri Lanka at Feroz Shah Kotla. Sachin surpassed his fellow Indian cricketer, Sunil Gavaskar to attain the record. Sachinâ&#x20AC;&#x2DC;s 39th career ODI century came on February 6, 2006 against Pakistan and also surpassed 14,000 ODI runs on the same day. On March 18th, Sachin returned to India to play in his 132nd test match in Mumbai, making him the Indian player to play the greatest number of test matches ever. Just a day later, on March 19, 2006, Sachin experienced something completely new to him: backlash from his fans. During a Test against England on his home grounds of Wankhede, Sachin only managed to score 1 for 21 in the first innings. He was then booed off the field by a portion of the crowd that had once followed him so loyally. When he returned to the field to play the second innings, he was greeted with the typical cheers, which motivated him to be the top scorer for the innings. Unfortunately, he finished the match without even scoring one fifty. Soon thereafter, rumors started surfacing that Sachin was facing a shoulder injury that might require surgery and make him unable to 27

Sachin Tendulkar: The Ton Machine

compete for selection in the next tour. It turned out that Sachin did have a serious shoulder injury; he underwent surgery and was forced to miss the Indian tour of the West Indies in 2006. Although there was skepticism about how quickly Sachin would recover from shoulder surgery and whether he would be selected for the next series, he overcame doubts and it was announced by the Board of Control for Cricket in India in July that Sachin was eligible for selection. By September, Sachin was back in action. He made his debut from injury at the DLF Cup in Malaysia and truly delivered the quintessential comeback match. Although many people openly doubted that Sachin would ever be as good as he once was, and questioned whether his career was over altogether, Sachin delivered his 40th ODI century on September 14, 2006 against West Indies, the first match he played after being out of commission for several months. He scored 141 not out that day. The good luck was running short for Sachin as his career took another hit in 2007. While he was getting ready to compete in the 2007 Cricket World Cup, Greg Chappell offered criticism about Sachin‘s attitude, which he felt was not professional or in line with good sportsmanship. Greg Chappell suggested to Sachin that he be pushed down in the batting order instead of opening the innings as he has typically done for most of his professional career. Sachin was in total disagreement with Chappell‘s comments and lashed out, which is not characteristic of Sachin‘s cricketing personality. In comments to the media, Sachin said that he believed Chappell to be incorrect and that no coach had ever questioned his attitude toward cricket before. After his comments to the media, the Board of Control for Cricket in India demanded on April 7, 2007 that Sachin address his out-of-line statements to the media. This all occurred as India tried desperately to win during the World Cup. The Indians 28

Sachin Tendulkar: The Ton Machine

suffered from the controversy with multiple losses and an unsuccessful series. Sachin produced uncharacteristically low numbers of 7 against Bangladesh, 57 not out against Bermuda, and 0 against Sri Lanka. In reaction to the controversy, Greg Chappell‘s brother and former Australian captain, Ian Chappell, called for Sachin‘s retirement from cricket. After having reached 35 test centuries in December 2005—one of the biggest accomplishments of Sachin‘s career—he spent one year and six months without scoring another century. This is the longest time that Sachin has gone without a century in his entire career. He scored 101 against Bangladesh in May of 2007 to break his century dry-spell. Return to Dominance After breaking his century dry-spell, and breaking out of the inexplicable decline in his batting form and skill, Sachin broke 15,000 ODI runs on June 29, 2007. In the subsequent months, Sachin returned to his old form. In back-to-back matches in the Future Cup against South Africa, Sachin scored over 90 runs and won Man of the Series once again. On July 28, 2007, Sachin reached 11,000 Test runs, making him only the third cricketer ever to accomplish such a feat. To completely shut down rumors that his career in cricket was over, Sachin was the top run scorer in the Future Cup, the one-day series in England and the October series against Australia. Even though he consistently fell in the second innings during the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, he produced 493 runs in four Tests. In Brisbane on February 8, 2008, Sachin became the first player ever to reach 16,000 ODI runs while competing against Sri Lanka in the One-Day International Commonwealth Bank Tri-Series between Australia, Sri Lanka and India. To finish the series against Sri Lanka, Sachin scored 117 not out off 120 balls in the first finals match and 91 runs in the second final. 29

Sachin Tendulkar: The Ton Machine

Sachin weaving magic with his shots India competed against South Africa as they toured the country in March and April 2008 to participate in a three-Test series. Sachin was only able to play one innings in the entire series (he scored a five-ball duck) because he suffered a groin strain that not only knocked him out of the series but also caused him to miss out on the tri-series in Bangladesh, the 2008 Asia cup, and the first part of the first season of the IPL. While Sachin was well on his way to break Brian Laraâ&#x20AC;&#x2DC;s record of 11,953 runs, Sachin was not able to score more than 95 runs in the July 2008 Sri Lanka series. During the series, Sachin put up the worst average heâ&#x20AC;&#x2DC;s ever had in a Test series with three or more matches, with a low 15.83 average.

Sachin Tendulkar: The Ton Machine

Later that year, India claimed the Border-Gavaskar trophy against Australia as Sachin finally broke Brian Lara‘s record by scoring over 12,000 Test runs. Although he had to sit out during the first three matches of the seven match series against England in 2008, Sachin joined his team at the fourth match to make 103 not out. This was the third time Sachin had scored a century in a fourth match innings. He dedicated the century to the victims of the Mumbai terrorist attacks that had temporarily halted play during the series. Sachin failed in the last two tests against Australia but India was able to come out victorious, 1 – 0 against the Australian cricketers. The 2009/2010 season brought much success and many milestones for Sachin. His 42nd Test century came during the first test of a series against New Zealand, a series that India eventually won 1–0 even though Sachin had to leave the final match due to intense stomach cramps. In September 2009 at the Compaq Cup, Sachin achieved another milestone by reaching his 6th century in an ODI final. Every one of the six times that Sachin has produced a century in an ODI final, India has won. During a seven match series against Australia, Sachin reached 17,000 ODI runs and produced his personal best numbers against Australia, although India lost to series. In 2010, Sachin made a century in both matches of the two-Test series against South Africa. The second century in the series was actually Sachin‘s 47th Test hundred and the first was the first time Sachin had scored a century on South African soil. In addition to these accomplishments, Sachin had scored four consecutive centuries in the last four matches. 31

Sachin Tendulkar: The Ton Machine

The second of those centuries was the hundredth time he had scored over 50 in International Test cricket. In the ODI series that followed, Sachin scored 200 not out, which made him the first ODI cricket player in history to score a double century. Sachin came out of the 2011 Cricket World Cup with an impressive average of 53.55 and two centuries and he was the second leading scorer of the entire tournament. Sachin burst into tears of joy as the Indian team defeated Sri Lanka in the final match to win the 2011 Cricket World Cup, one of the proudest and most momentous occasions of Sachin‘s long cricketing career. Sachin has said that winning the World Cup for India was the ―proudest moment of [his] life.‖ Close to scoring 100 cricket centuries [99, while writing this book], Sachin fell short with a high score of 91 runs during the Indian tour of England and 94 runs during the West-Indies tour of India, because a foot injury from 2001 had begun to bother him and affect his play. Nevertheless, On November 8, 2011, Sachin became the first player to reach 15,000 runs in the history of Test Cricket. Sachin‘s defining moment of creating the biggest record ever, in the history of cricket is just around the corner and should be accomplished anytime soon… Unlimited records and still going strong! This is the story of Cricket’s Legendary History Creator. Yes! It‘s very much Unbelievable…yet true. Shall we now say, ‗The Ton Machine‘ is no doubt the undisputed ―God of Cricket World‖!!

Sachin Tendulkar: The Ton Machine

Section 3

Sachin’s wax statue at Madame Tussauds, London

Facts and Figures  Sachin was named after his father‘s favorite music director, Sachin Dev Burman.  He was aged 15 years and 232 days when he was the youngest cricketer to score a century on debut. 33

Sachin Tendulkar: The Ton Machine

 Waqar Younis, who bowled Sachin at his first international match, was also making his international debut.  Sachin‘s first Test 50 came at Faisalabad in 1989 only a few days after his international debut where he only scored 15 runs.  He has been Man of the Match 11 times and Man of the Series Twice.  He is the only player to score a century while on his Ranji Trophy, Irani Trophy and Duleep Trophy debut.  When Sachin scored 148 runs against Australia in the 1991-92 seasons, the Australian player Merv Hughes said to Allan Border about Sachin: ―This prick‘s going to get more runs than you, AB.‖  Even though he‘s not a regular bowler, Sachin has 37 wickets in 132 tests.  In 1998, Sachin scored 1894 runs in ODI matches, making it the highest number of runs scored ever by a batsman in a calendar year.  He holds the world record for scoring 1,000 or more runs in ODI matches in a calendar year: 1994, 1996, 1997, 1998, 2000, and 2003.  He has scored 1,000 Test runs in 1997, 1999, 2001, and 2002.  Due to millions of dollars in endorsement deals and contracts, Sachin is the wealthiest Indian cricketer.  At the age of 31, Sachin became the only cricketer ever to score a century against every test-playing country.  On November 25, 2005, Sachin reached his 357th one-day appearances, breaking Wasim Akram‘s record of 356.  For most of his career, Sachin was the batsman that opened the innings.  Sachin is the first batsman to score over 50 centuries in international cricket.

Sachin Tendulkar: The Ton Machine

 Sachin has the most ODI centuries, the most Man of the Match Awards and the most Man of the Series Awards of any cricketer in history.  In October 2007, Sachin became the first player ever to score over 1000 runs in seven calendar years.  Sachin is left handed, yet he bats, bowls and throws with his right hand.  CricInfo columnist Sambit Bal has called Sachin ―The most wholesome batsman of his time.‖  Sachin is married to Anjali, a pediatrician six years his senior.  Anjali and Sachin have two children: a daughter named Sara, who was born on October 12, 1997, and a son named Arjun, who was born on September 24, 1999.  Sachin stands at only 5 feet 5 inches. His height greatly impeded his ability to be a great fast bowler.  The American tennis player John McEnroe is Sachin‘s life-long idol. He would often wear tennis gear in support of his idol.  Sachin‘s brother is so superstitious that he will only allow the family members to watch the match recording while Sachin is batting.  Sachin‘s wife gets very nervous when he is batting.  Due to his upbringing, Sachin is strongly religious. He is devoted to Sai Baba and Ganpathi.  Sachin believes in re-birth, and the existence of Heaven and Hell.  He celebrates religious holidays at home with his tightknit family.  His career average is 55.78, making it the highest average for players that have scored over 10,000 runs.  Sachin has played more Test matches for India than any other player.  Sachin is the only player to have 154 wickets as well as 18,000 runs in ODI.

Sachin Tendulkar: The Ton Machine

 Sachin is the only player to have 45 wickets and over 15,000 runs in Test cricket.  He is the highest run scorer in the history of Test cricket with 15183 runs as of December 2011.  Sachin‘s bowling style is Right-arm off break and Leg Break Googly.  He is the cricketer with the most devoted fans and largest fan base, which extends all over the world.  Sachin has the most ODI runs in the history of cricket, with 18111 as of December 2011.  Although he doesn‘t have a signature move, he is well known for the upright, back foot punch.  According to CricInfo, his best performances are: o 119 not out v England, Old Trafford in 1990 o 114 v Australia, Perth in 1991-92 o 169 v South Africa, Cape Town, 1996-97  He claims the highest individual score of any Indian batsman (248).  Has the highest number of runs (673) in a single World Cup by any player in history.  Has also been nicknamed ―The Record Man‖  He has appeared on more grounds than any other cricketer.  He has scored the most centuries against Australia, Sri Lanka, Zimbabwe and New Zealand.  According to Wisden, he is rated as the second best batsman in the history of cricket, only second to Don Bradman.  Don Bradman has said that he considers Sachin to be the best batsman of all time.  Sachin is the 1st Indian sportsman to get his Wax Statue at Madame Tussauds.  Few of Sachin‘s Awards, Honors and Appreciations are: o Arjuna Award by Govt. of India in 1994 o Wisden Cricketer of the year in1997 o Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna in 1997-98 36

Sachin Tendulkar: The Ton Machine

o o o o

 

   

Padma Shri by Govt. of India in1999 Maharashtra Bhushan in 2001 Padma Vibushan by Govt. of India in 2008 ICC Award – Sir Garfield Sobers trophy for Cricketer of the year in 2010 Owing to huge demand from the people of India, Sachin Tendulkar is likely to be awarded the ―Bharat Ratna‖, which is Govt. of India‘s highest civilian award. Ricky Ponting, the 2nd highest centurion after Sachin Tendulkar, is 30 centuries away from him at 69 centuries. He is also 2nd and behind Sachin by around 7000 runs in the overall runs for Tests and ODIs put together. Did you know, Sachin has also taken 200 wickets in Tests & ODIs combined? He also has taken over 247 catches. The four years from 1996 to 1999 were his peak seasons where Sachin scored 34 centuries and took 53 wickets. Sachin has hit 3940 fours overall and leaves the 2nd position way behind to Ponting with 2713. Sachin is involved in a lot of charities and noble causes [see our separate section – The other side of Sachin]

Sachin Tendulkar - Records at a Glance Most Hundreds in Cricket (Test + ODI) Player

Inns 746

Runs 33304

HS 248*

100

Sachin Tendulkar

Mat 638

Ricky Ponting

545

646

26743

257

JH Kallis

480

569

23889

201*

Brian Lara

430

521

22358

400*

Rahul Dravid

505

597

24014

270

Highest Runs in Cricket (Test + ODI) Player Sachin Tendulkar Ricky Ponting Rahul Dravid JH Kallis Brian Lara

Span 19892011 19952011 19962011 19952011 19902007

Mat 638

Inns 746

Runs 33304

HS 248*

Ave 49.48

545

646

26743

257

46.34

505

597

24014

270

45.74

480

569

23889

201*

50.18

430

521

22358

400*

46.28

Summary of Matches Played by Tendulkar Match Type Tests

Mat

Inns

Runs

Ave

100

184

303

15183

248*

56.02

110

ODIs

453

442

18111

200*

45.16

136

T20Is

Twenty20

2069

100*

39.78

Sachin Tendulkar: The Ton Machine

Most Matches in Cricket Player Sachin Tendulkar ST Jayasuriya

Span 19892011 19892011 19952011 19972011 19962011

Ricky Ponting DPMD Jayawardene Rahul Dravid

Mat 638

Runs 33304

Ave 49.48

Wkts 200

Ct 247

586

21032

34.14

440

205

545

26743

46.34

352

517

21011

39.94

371

505

24014

45.74

406

Most Fifties in Cricket (Test + ODI) Player Sachin Tendulkar

Mat 638

Inns 746

Runs 33304

50>100 158

Total 50+ 257

Ricky Ponting

545

646

26743

142

211

JH Kallis

480

569

23889

143

200

Rahul Dravid

505

597

24014

145

193

Brian Lara

430

521

22358

111

164

Most Awards in Cricket Player Sachin Tendulkar ST Jayasuriya JH Kallis Ricky Ponting Brian Lara

Span 19892011 19892011 19952011 19952011 19902007

Mat 638

Awards 76

Tests 14

ODIs 62

T20Is 0

586

481

545

430

Sachin Tendulkar: The Ton Machine

Tendulkar - Statistics for matches within India & outside Venue

Span

Mat

Runs

Home

19902011 19892011 19902009

246

13741

217

Bat Av 51.85

246

13360

248*

146

6203

152

Away Neutral

100

Wkts

47.04

50.02

Tendulkar - Performance in Different Series Tournament World Cup

Mat 45

Runs 2278

HS 152

Bat Av 56.95

100 6

Wkts 8

Asia Cup

799

112*

49.93

ICC Champions Trophy BorderGavaskar Aus Tri Series

441

141

36.75

2783

241*

63.25

1234

117*

37.39

Most Fours in Cricket Player Sachin Tendulkar

Mat 638

Runs 33304

Ave 49.48

4s 3940

6s 259

Ricky Ponting

545

26743

46.34

2713

246

Brian Lara

430

22358

46.28

2594

221

Rahul Dravid

505

24014

45.74

2579

ST Jayasuriya

586

21032

34.14

2486

352

Sachin Tendulkar: The Ton Machine

Performance against different countries Mat

Runs

v Australia

6209

241*

Bat Av 52.61

v Bangladesh

1202

248*

v Bermuda

v England

v Ireland

Country

100

Wkts

80.13

57*

3878

193

51.02

v Kenya

647

146

107.8

v Namibia

152

v Netherlands

39.5

v New Zealand v Pakistan

3282

217

47.56

3531

194*

40.58

v South Africa v Sri Lanka

3752

200*

38.28

104

4978

203

50.28

v U.A.E.

40.5

v West Indies

3119

179

53.77

v Zimbabwe

2295

201*

57.37

Most Sixes in Cricket Player Shahid Afridi

Mat 405

Runs 9322

Ave 24.66

4s 907

6s 376

ST Jayasuriya

586

21032

34.14

2486

352

Chris Gayle

339

15077

39.78

1939

278

Adam Gilchrist

396

15461

38.94

1866

262

Sachin Tendulkar

638

33304

49.48

3940

259

Sachin Tendulkar: The Ton Machine

Tendulkar Timeline - Year Wise Performance Year 1989

Mat 5

Runs 215

HS 59

Bat Av 30.71

100 0

Wkts 0

1990

612

119*

32.21

1991

495

30.93

1992

1123

148*

40.1

1993

959

165

47.95

1994

1789

179

54.21

1995

502

112*

38.61

1996

2234

177

49.64

1997

2011

169

41.04

1998

2541

177

68.67

1999

1931

217

53.63

2000

1903

201*

44.25

2001

1907

155

65.75

2002

2133

193

54.69

2003

1294

152

44.62

2004

1727

248*

57.56

2005

856

123

34.24

2006

905

141*

34.8

2007

2201

122*

50.02

2008

1523

154*

46.15

2009

1513

175

58.19

2010

1766

214

84.09

2011

1164

146

46.56

Sachin Tendulkar: The Ton Machine

The Other Side of Sachin

Sachin is not just a hero on the cricket ground. He has a golden heart and supports lots of charities. He says, doing good to

others and giving back to the underprivileged, is something he learnt from his family.  Sachin supports an NGO by the name of ‗Apnalaya‘ where he looks after the welfare and education of 200 children. He said he will try to double his givings in whichever way he can, as part of ‗Joy of Giving week‘, conceptualized by another NGO ‗GiveIndia‘  Sachin tweeted for a cause ‗Sachin‘s crusade against Cancer in children‘ and his fans responded with more than 12.5 million [1.25 Crore Rupees] in donation.  During World Cup, an NGO ‗Make a Wish foundation‘ and eBay India came together to auction 2 autographed bats of Sachin Tendulkar, to grant the most cherished wish of children living with life threatening illness. 43

Sachin Tendulkar: The Ton Machine

 Sachin joined forces with UNICEF to get Indian children improve their health and hygiene as part of the Global Handwashing day.  Charities Aid Foundation and Coca-Cola organized a

charity program where Sachin gave cricketing tips to the underprivileged students across India through satellite, raising Rs. 7 Crores in donations, to be used in around 140 schools that lack basic facilities There are many more such causes that Sachin Tendulkar is associated with, although he hardly speaks about them. A Good Heart… a Great Soul… a Living Legend. We salute you Mr. Tendulkar!!

Sachin Tendulkar: The Ton Machine

Bibliography & Credits  C, S. (2010, October 15). Top Ten Best Innings of Sachin Tendulkar - II. http://www.sportspundit.com/cricket/articles/6061-topten-best-innings-of-sachin-tendulkar-ii  Living Legend Sachin Tendulkar. ―A Site From a Die Hard Sachin Tendulkar Fan: Sachin Tendulkar Biography.‖ http://www.sachintendulkar.in/2008/08/biography.html  Mahajan, D. (2003). Sachin Tendulkar Achievements. Retrieved from http://sachintendulkar.cricketrecords.com/links/Achievem ents.htm  Sachin Tendulkar. ESPN CricInfo: http://www.espncricinfo.com/india/content/player/35320.h tml  Personal Information on Sachin Tendulkar. http://www.yehhaicricket.com/pinforamation/sachinperso nalinformation.html 45

Sachin Tendulkar: The Ton Machine

Image Credits  Blnguyen (2008, February 14). Sachin Tendulkar at Adelaide Oval http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Sachin_Tendulka r.jpg  Mvkulkarni 23(2011, February 25) Sachin Tendulkar Photo http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/archive/0 /01/20110226050253%21Sachin_Tendulkar.jpg  Mvkulkarni23 (2011, August 15) Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar Wax Statue in Madame Tussauds London http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Sachin_Ramesh_ Tendulkar_Wax_Statue_in_Madame_Tussauds_London.j pg  Privatemusings (2008, January 11) Sachin Tendulkar celebrates his century against Australia, 4th Jan 2008 http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Sachin_tendulkar .jpg

Sachin Tendulkar: The Ton Machine

 Privatemusings (2008, January 24) Sachin Tendulkar and an Indian teammate support each other mid-innings http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Cricket_Partners hip.jpg  Pulkitsinha (2011, November 1) Sachin Tendulkar scores his record-breaking 14,000th run in test cricket, playing against Australia, Bangalore, October 10, 2010 http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Sachin_Tendulka r_about_to_score_14000th_run_in_test_cricket.jpg  Flickr images post with creative commons license

http://www.flickr.com/search/?l=commderiv&mt =all&adv=1&w=all&q=sachin+tendulkar&m=text

Acknowledgements We acknowledge some of the sites as mentioned in the Bibliography, to have helped us gather certain facts and figures, which have formed part of the content. We would also like to appreciate the inputs of the team at SS Publications and our partner site http://www.godofcricketworld.com for taking efforts to study, research and collate information needed to be put together as records, statistical content and data into this book. Immense amount of research, money and hard work has gone into bringing out this finished product, in a form, that has potentially 47

Sachin Tendulkar: The Ton Machine

become a collector’s item for a lot of information about this legendary cricketer. We are sure it would be part of every fan’s collection at this enviable price, justifying the efforts of everyone who are part of this project. In fact, we dedicate this book to Every Fan of the Master Blaster and this beautiful game of Cricket, because it was each one of YOU, who inspired us, to take the effort, to bring out this wonderful creation. Hope you enjoyed it as much, as we did, in putting it together for you. We appreciate, if you could leave your feedback, as to how you enjoyed this book, in the Review Section of the site that you purchased this book from, so that, more readers like you could benefit… and if you liked this book, may we ask you to do us a favor, by recommending it to your friends and family, to buy their copy of this book too! Well, we can assure you, they sure will find this book, more worthy a possession to keep, than, the Coffee they bought today  (we mean the price is same for both)

Thanks for Buying, Reading, Enjoying and Recommending this Book!!

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