We can’t imagine cricket without Sachin Tendulkar, he has created such an impact on this game. With his technique, discipline, perseverance, and consistency Sachin has imparted this game to a new height. You just can not define the class in cricket without watching Sachin Tendulkar bat. Whether it was his impeccable straight drive or his backfoot punches, he made us fall in love with his elegant stroke play. On his 49th auspicious birthday, let’s have a look at the interesting facts about Sachin Tendulkar – “The God of Cricket”.
- Sachin wished to become a fast bowler at the age of 14 but Dennis Lillie’s MRF Foundation rejected him in 1987.
- During his young days, Sachin’s coach Ramakant Archekar used to gift him a coin for not getting out in the nets for a day. Sachin gained 13 coins in such a manner.
- Before making his debut in 1989 against Pakistan in a test, Sachin served as a ball boy in the 1987 World Cup at Wankhede stadium in the match between India and Zimbabwe.
- Sachin once fielded for Pakistan in 1998 at Brabourne stadium in a practice ODI match between India and Pakistan as a substitute.
- The 5-years World Tel endorsement deal of INR 31.5 cr made Sachin Tendulkar the richest cricketer then.
- The ace batsman is the first batsman to be given out by the third umpire in 1992. It was the test match against South Africa where Sachin was reviewed for runout, caused by Jonty Rhodes.
- In 1992, Sachin became the youngest Indian to play county cricket. He had an excellent stint with Yorkshire, amassing 1070 runs in 16 matches.
- Sachin had a start worth remembering in domestic cricket, he smacked a hundred in Ranji, Duleep, and Irani trophies.
- Sachin bought his first car Maruti 800 with a loan but later his marvelous cricketing career made him a brand ambassador of the reputed brand BMW.
- Sachin has played 6 cricket World cups, which is the most by any player in the history of the game (1992-2011), his dream came true in the 2011 World Cup when India lifted the cup at Wankhede by defeating Sri Lanka.
- ICC conferred Sachin the Man of the Match award in the 2003 World cup for scoring the most runs, 673 runs in 11 matches.
- In 2010, Sachin became the 1st player to hit a double century in ODI, 200* off 147 balls against a bowling lineup consisting of Dale Steyn, Jacques Kallis, and Wayne Parnell.
- Along with most ODI runs (18426), Sachin has the highest number of centuries too in the format (49) in 463 ODIs.
- The 5ft 5-inch batsman has won the most Man of the Match and Series awards in ODI (62 & 15).
- The ace batsman was renowned around the globe not only for his performances but for his heavy bat too, 3.2 lbs.
- Sachin’s favorite snack is famous Marathi food:” Vadapav”.
- The talented boy from Mumbai holds the record of smashing the most centuries in a calendar year, 9 in 1998.
- The feat of accumulating the most ODI runs in a calendar year is also owned by Sachin, with 1894 runs in 1998.
- Sachin Tendulkar’s father Ramesh was a huge fan of former music director Sachin Dev Burman hence he named Sachin after him.
- An interesting thing about Sachin is he has more five-wicket hauls than Shane Warne, Warne had 1 but Sachin bagged two with his unpredictable bowling.
- Sachin got married to Anjali Tendulkar in 1995, she is a doctor by profession. They have two children together, Sara and Arjun.
- For his contribution to cricket, The government of India honored him with the prestigious Bharat Ratna in 2014, the only cricketer to get it.
- Sachin’s jersey number was 10, which was later donned by Shardul Thakur in international cricket. But after too much criticism BCCI decided to retire it in 2017.
- Sachin’s nicknames are “Little Master” & “Master Blaster”.
- Sachin is considered the richest cricketer in the world with an estimated net worth of $150 million.
Senior Cricket Content Editor at Skyblogs Cricket.
Contact me at info@skyblogs.in