On this day in 1989, the god of Indian cricket walked out to bat for his country for the first time, in a Test match in Karachi. 27 years hence, Sachin Tendulkar has become synonymous with Indian cricket.
Debuting at 16, Tendulkar matured into more than one of the greatest cricketers ever; he gave self-belief to India’s youth and hope to a nation as a whole.
After 200 Tests, 463 ODIs and thousands of runs later, not even the iconic MS Dhoni or Virat Kohli can replace Tendulkar. And even Kohli, the Indian Test skipper, seems to agree.
Incidentally, it wasn’t just Tendulkar who was making his first foray into the world of cricket in Karachi that day. Pakistani bowler Waqar Younis too made his debut in the same Test match. This is what Younis had to say 27 years on:
And other tweeples couldn’t stop beaming with pride either.
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