Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar (born 24 April 1973) is an Indian former international cricketer who is widely regarded as the greatest batsman of his generation and one of the best to have ever played the game. Sachin took up cricket at the age of 11 and soon he was recognized as a child prodigy. After just one first-class season, before turning 17, he made his Test as well as One Day International (ODI) debut against Pakistan in late 1989 to become the youngest player to debut for India in Tests and ODIs. Tendulkar went on to have stellar careers in both the formats to become the all time leading scorer in Tests as well as ODI cricket. With 100 International 100s, he currently also holds the record for the most centuries in Tests and in ODIs. Sachin has broken a plethora of records during the course of his career. Among other things, he holds the record for most ODI runs in a calendar year and the most runs in a single World Cup. In 2011, Sachin realized his long time dream of helping India win the ODI World Cup, a feat he considers the “proudest moment of my life”. For inspiring a generation, Tendulkar has received numerous honors from the Indian government including the Bharat Ratna, the highest civilian award in India. Here are the 10 major achievements of Sachin Tendulkar including his career statistics and records; and awards received by him.
* All stats in the article are as of March, 2020. If any of Sachin’s records are broken, we will try to update the article.
#1 HE SCORED A CENTURY ON DEBUT IN ALL THREE FIRST-CLASS TOURNAMENTS
Sachin developed a reputation as a child prodigy in school. On November 14, 1987, he was selected to represent Bombay in the Ranji Trophy, India’s premier domestic first-class cricket tournament. However, he didn’t play in any of the matches in the 1987–88 season. A year later, on December 11, 1988, Sachin made his first-class debut against Gujarat at the age of 15 years and 232 days. He scored 100 not out in that match to become the youngest Indian to score a century on debut in first-class cricket. Sachin finished the 1988–89 Ranji Trophy season as Bombay’s highest run-scorer with 583 runs at an average of 67.77. He was the eight highest run scorer overall in the season. Sachin also scored a century in his first Duleep Trophy match and his first Irani Trophy match. He remains the only player to score a century on debut in all three of his domestic first-class tournaments (Ranji, Irani and Duleep Trophies).
#2 HE REMAINS THE YOUNGEST PLAYER TO DEBUT FOR INDIA IN TESTS AND ODIS
After only one first class season, Sachin was selected to represent India in the 1989 tour of Pakistan. He made his Test debut against Pakistan at Karachi, Nov 15-20, 1989. He was dismissed by Waqar Younis, who also made his debut in that match. As of March 2020, Sachin remains the youngest ever player to debut for India in Tests at the age of 16 years and 205 days. Moreover, he remains the fifth youngest international Test player with the record held by Hasan Raza of Pakistan. In his first test series, Sachin made 215 runs at an average of 35.83. In a famous incident in the fourth test, Sachin was hit on the nose by a bouncer bowled by Younis. However, he declined medical assistance, put some water on his face and said he was fine. He continued to bat as blood gushed from his nose, hitting the next ball for a four. He scored valuable 57 runs in the inning helping India draw the Test. In the same tour, Sachin made his One Day International (ODI) debut against Pakistan at Gujranwala on December 18, 1989. He remains the youngest player to debut for India in ODIs at the age of 16 years and 238 days. Sachin was dismissed without scoring in his ODI debut.
#3 HE REMAINS THE THIRD YOUNGEST PLAYER TO SCORE A CENTURY IN TEST CRICKET
The series against Pakistan was followed by India’s tours to New Zealand, England and Australia. In the second Test against England at Old Trafford in Manchester, Tendulkar scored his first international century. His score of 119 made him the second youngest cricketer to score a Test century. As of March 2020, Tendulkar remains the youngest player to score a century in Tests for India at the age of 17 years 107 days; and the third youngest overall. In the five match series against Australia, Tendulkar enhanced his reputation by scoring a century in the third Test at Sydney and the fifth Test at Perth. His unbeaten 148 at Sydney makes him the youngest player to score a Test century in Australia. Sachin also remains the youngest player to score a century in England and South Africa. Moreover, three of the ten centuries by youngest players in Tests belong to Tendulkar.
#4 HE HAS SCORED THE MOST RUNS IN TEST CRICKET
Sachin Tendulkar went on to have a stellar career in Test cricket which lasted for more than 24 years till India’s match against West Indies on November 16, 2013. He played 200 Test matches in his career which is the most by any player till date. Tendulkar scored 15,921 runs during the course of his Test career which remains the most runs by anyone in Test cricket. The second player on the list is Ricky Ponting of Australia who has scored 13,378, more than 2,000 runs less than Sachin. Tendulkar also holds the record for most centuries in Test cricket with 51 hundreds. As of March 2020, no other player has scored more than 50 Test centuries with Jacques Kallis of South Africa being second on the list with 45 centuries. During the time Tendulkar played Test cricket, from November 15, 1989 to November 16, 2013, only two players (min 5000 runs) averaged more than him per inning. Kumar Sangakkara of Sri Lanka with an average of 56.98 and Jacques Kallis with an average of 55.44 are the only two players with a better average than Sachin’s 53.78 during this period. Sachin was also a part time bowler taking 46 Test wickets at an average of 54.17.
#5 HE IS ALSO THE TOP RUN-SCORER IN ODI CRICKET
Tendulkar had a stellar career in ODI cricket too which lasted for more than 22 years till India’s match against Pakistan on March 18, 2012. He played 463 ODI matches in his career which is more than anyone else. Sachin scored 18,426 runs in ODI cricket which is the most by any player till date. The second batsman on the list is Kumar Sangakkara, who has scored 14,234 runs, more than 4,000 runs less than Sachin. Tendulkar also holds the record of most centuries in ODI cricket with 49 hundreds. This record will most probably be broken soon by Virat Kohli of India, who has already scored 43 hundreds and is second on the list. During the time Tendulkar played ODI cricket, from December 18, 1989 to March 18, 2012, only five players (min 5000 runs) averaged more than him per inning. Michael Bevan of Australia leads this list with an average of 53.58, though he had a high percentage of not outs. Sachin averaged 44.83 per inning during the course of his ODI career. Tendulkar was also a part time bowler in ODI cricket and he took 154 wickets in the format at an average of 44.48.
#6 HE HOLDS THE RECORD FOR MOST RUNS IN A SINGLE WORLD CUP
Tendulkar reserved his best in ODI cricket for the biggest stage, the ODI World Cup. He played 6 World Cups during the course of his career with the first being the 1992 World Cup in Australia and the last being the 2011 World Cup in India. Sachin scored 2,278 runs in World Cup cricket, which is the most by anyone. He also scored 6 centuries in his World Cup career, a record he shares with Rohit Sharma of India. In the six World Cups he played, his average of 56.95 is better than anyone with more than 1,000 runs. In the 1996 World Cup in India, Sachin was the top scorer with 523 runs at an average of 85.87. His efforts helped India reach the semi-final stage where they lost to Sri Lanka. In the 2003 World Cup in South Africa, Sachin was again the top scorer with 673 runs at an average of 61.18. His 673 runs at this World Cup remain the most runs scored by a batsman at a single World Cup. Sachin’s efforts helped India reach the final of the 2003 World Cup, where they lost to Australia. Tendulkar received the Player of the Series award for his performance in the tournament.
#7 TENDULKAR HELPED INDIA WIN THE 2011 ICC WORLD CUP
Winning the World Cup had been a long time dream of Tendulkar. Before the 2011 World Cup in Bangladesh, India and Sri Lanka; he had been a part of an Indian team that was unsuccessful in five previous attempts. In the group stage, Sachin scored 2 centuries as India finished second in Group B. In the quarter-final against Australia, he scored 53 runs which helped India chase down a target of 261. In the much hyped semi-final against Pakistan, Tendulkar was the top scorer with 85 runs as India put on a score of 260, which couldn’t be chased down by Pakistan. For his effort, Sachin was named Player of the Match in the semi-final. In the final, Sri Lanka put up a stiff target of 275 for India. Sachin could only score 18 runs but, due to the efforts of Gautam Gambhir and M.S. Dhoni, India chased down the target thus winning the World Cup for the second time; the first being the 1983 World Cup in England. Sachin scored 482 runs at an average of 53.55 in the 2011 World Cup, which was the most for India and second only to Tillakaratne Dilshan of Sri Lanka. Shortly after the victory, Tendulkar commented that “Winning the World Cup is the proudest moment of my life.”
#8 HE WAS THE FIRST MALE PLAYER TO SCORE A DOUBLE HUNDRED IN ODIS
Sachin Tendulkar scored more than a 1,000 Test runs in a calendar year on six occasions (1997, 1998, 2001, 2002, 2008 & 2010), which is more than anyone else. In 2010, he scored 1562 runs in Test cricket, which is the fifth highest by anyone in history. Sachin also scored more than a 1,000 ODI runs in a calendar year on seven occasions (1994, 1996, 1997, 1998, 2000, 2003 & 2007), which is a record he shares with Kohli. In 1998, he scored 1,894 runs in ODIs, the record for the most ODI runs scored in a single calendar year. In Test matches, Sachin has been Man of the Match (MOM) 13 times and Man of the Series (MOS) four times. In ODIs, he has been MOM 62 times and MOS 15 times. His 62 MOM awards in ODIs is the most by any player with Sanath Jayasuriya of Sri Lanka being second on the list with 48 such awards. His 15 MOS in ODIs is again a record with Sanath Jayasuriya again being second on the list with 11 such awards. On February 24, 2010, playing against South Africa in Gwalior, Sachin scored 200* to become the first male batsman to score a double century in ODI history.
#9 HE IS WIDELY REGARDED AS ONE OF THE GREATEST CRICKETERS OF ALL TIME
In his 664 International matches, Tendulkar has scored 34,357 runs and hit 100 centuries. No other batsman has scored more than 30,000 International runs with Ricky Ponting being the second on the list with 28,016 runs. No one has also hit more than 75 hundreds with Ponting being the second on the list with 71 centuries. Due to his enormous achievements in the sport, Sachin Tendulkar is widely regarded as one of the greatest cricketers of all time. Wisden Cricketers’ Almanack is a British cricket reference book known as the “bible of cricket”. In 2002, it ranked Tendulkar as the second greatest Test batsman of all time, behind Don Bradman of Australia. Moreover, it also ranked him as the second greatest ODI batsman of all time, behind Viv Richards of West Indies. In 2013, on its 150th anniversary, Wisden also included Sachin in their all-time Test World XI. Moreover, Sachin has been Wisden Leading Cricketer in the World in 1998 and 2010. The International Cricket Council (ICC) awards started in 2004. Tendulkar won the Sir Garfield Sobers Trophy for the World Player of the Year in 2010. Moreover, he has been part of ICC World Test XI on three occasions (2009, 2010 & 2011) and ICC World ODI XI on three occasions (2004, 2007 & 2010).
#10 SACHIN TENDULKAR HAS BEEN AWARDED THE BHARAT RATNA
Sachin Tendulkar has had an enormous impact on cricket in India and he has inspired a generation of batsmen in the nation. Numerous cricketers from Yuvraj Singh to Virat Kohli to Shafali Verma; have cited Tendulkar as one of the reasons they began playing cricket. For inspiring a generation, Sachin has received numerous awards from the Indian government. In 1994, he received the Arjuna Award for his outstanding sporting achievement and, in 1997, he received the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna award, India’s highest sporting honor. In 1999 and 2008, he received the Padma Shri and Padma Vibhushan awards, India’s fourth and second highest civilian awards respectively. In 2010, Time magazine included Sachin in its annual Time 100 list as one of the “Most Influential People in the World”. Few hours after his retirement on November 16, 2013, the Prime Minister’s Office announced that Sachin Tendulkar would be receiving the Bharat Ratna, the highest civilian award in India. Sachin is the youngest recipient to date and the first ever sportsperson to receive the award. In 2019, Sachin was inducted into the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame.
If you are interested in stats and want to see how Sachin compares against the other top batsmen of his era in Tests and ODIs across 10 criteria, here are articles about his detailed statistical achievements:-
BEST TEST BATSMAN IN THE ERA OF TENDULKAR
BEST ODI BATSMAN IN THE ERA OF TENDULKAR