Tendulkar, Sachin Ramesh

▪ 1997

      India was long known for its habit of producing young cricket players who rose fast and faded with equal speed. It was a measure of the talent of Sachin Tendulkar, who was made captain of his country's team at the age of just 23 in August 1996, that when he first burst onto the cricket scene, no one had any doubt he was the genuine article: a batsman of good temperament, sound technique, and true elegance. In size, if not quite build, the 1.68-m (5-ft 6-in) Tendulkar was a natural successor to the great Sunil Gavaskar, the diminutive opener whose courage and powers of concentration made him the most prolific run-scorer in Indian and, for a time, all Test (competition involving teams that represent countries) history. In 1996 Tendulkar already had 10 centuries to his name, and his average of 54.92 put him in the very highest class of Test batsmen.

      Like Gavaskar, Tendulkar came from Bombay (Mumbai), where he was born on April 24, 1973, the youngest of four children. His father was a teacher of Marathi (his native tongue), and his mother worked for a life insurance firm. He was given his first bat when he was 11 and as a 14-year-old used it to score 329 out of a world-record stand of 664 in a school match. A year later he scored a century on his first-class debut for Bombay, and at 16 years 205 days, he became India's youngest Test cricketer, making his debut against Pakistan in Karachi in November 1989.

      Tendulkar quickly established himself as the darling of Indian cricket. In 1995 he signed a contract with a satellite television company for a reputed $7.5 million over five years, an enormous sum for a cricketer. In early 1996 Star TV wanted to televise his marriage to an Anglo-Indian doctor, but the couple rejected the offer and barred all photographers until the reception the following day, a measure of Tendulkar's lack of ease when in the public eye.

      Although he shied away from extravagant comparisons, Tendulkar was often likened to Sir Don Bradman of Australia, the greatest batsman of all, in his single-minded dedication to scoring runs and the certainty of his strokeplay off both front and back foot. In Australia, when he was 18, Tendulkar scored two centuries (148 in Sydney and 114 in Perth), both in losing causes. In Nagpur, India, in 1994, he scored 179 against the West Indies, hitting bowler Courtney Walsh for six to bring up his hundred.

      Despite Tendulkar's own efforts (top run scorer, with 523 runs) in the 1996 World Cup, India was headed for defeat when it defaulted to Sri Lanka in the semifinal. The Indian side's loss hastened his almost inevitable elevation to the captaincy. Tendulkar's ultimate aim was to score 40 Test centuries and 15,000 Test runs. Few doubted that he had the ability to achieve both and finally eclipse Gavaskar. (ANDREW LONGMORE)

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▪ Indian athlete

born April 24, 1973, Bombay [Mumbai], India

      Indian professional cricket player, considered by many to be one of the greatest batsmen of all time. In 2005 he became the first cricketer to score 35 centuries in Test (international) play.

      Tendulkar was given his first bat when he was 11. As a 14-year-old, he used it to score 329 out of a world-record stand of 664 in a school match. A year later he scored a century on his first-class debut for Bombay (Mumbai), and at 16 years 205 days he became India's youngest Test cricketer, making his debut against Pakistan in Karachi in November 1989. When he was 18 he scored two centuries in Australia (148 in Sydney and 114 in Perth), and in 1994 he scored 179 against the West Indies. In August 1996, at age 23, Tendulkar was made captain of his country's team.

      Although India was defeated in the semifinals of the 1996 World Cup, Tendulkar emerged as the tournament's top run scorer, with 523 runs. In 1997 he was chosen for the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award, the highest award given to an Indian athlete, for his outstanding performance in the 1997–98 season. India was defeated by Australia in the 1999 World Cup, failing to advance past the round of six, and was soundly defeated by both Australia and South Africa in series later that year. In the 2003 World Cup, however, Tendulkar helped his team advance as far as the finals. Though India was again defeated by Australia, Tendulkar, who averaged 60.2, was named the man of the tournament.

      Tendulkar made history in December 2005 when he scored his record-breaking 35th century in Test play against Sri Lanka. The feat was accomplished in a total of 125 Tests and allowed Tendulkar to surpass the prolific Indian run scorer Sunil Gavaskar. In June 2007 Tendulkar reached another major milestone when he became the first player to record 15,000 runs in one-day international play. Throughout his long career Tendulkar was consistently ranked among the game's best batsmen. He was often likened to Australia's Don Bradman (Bradman, Don) in his single-minded dedication to scoring runs and the certainty of his strokeplay off both front and back foot.

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