Sachin Tendulkar makes India proud

Fireworks started to illuminate the skies of Mohali as soon as Sachin Tendulkar scored his 15th run to surpass the record for the most runs in test cricket. He has now 12,037 runs to his name with 39 centuries. In his own words, “to get past 12,000-runs mark is the greatest milestone”.  Sachin started his career against Pakistan at Karachi in 1989. Playing against top-quality Pakistani bowling attack having the likes of Imran Khan, Wasim Akram, and Waqar Younus was not an easy task for a debutant. It was in Faisalabad test, when he showed his metal – scoring a quickfire 53 off just 18 balls. Since then, he has never looked back and has continued to provide the purest cricketing entertainment. Really, his batting is a treat to watch. Sachin has seen a number of ups and downs in his illustrious career that spans 19 years. His iconic stature, his public lifestyle, and the media craze have had a strong impact on him - but he has always remained committed to his game. There was a time when Tendulkar used to be the only sought-after batsman for the rival bowlers. This is his greatness that during that testing period; he never let his team down.  Sachin Tendulkar is truly a run-making machine, having all arrays of shots in his kit. He always keeps the bowlers guessing and the fieldsmen on their toes. As compared to other batsmen of the sub-continent, he has scored more runs on bouncy and fast wickets, which is indeed a remarkable achievement. Two of his best performances came against Pakistan – one in Chennai Test in 1999 (when he scored 136 runs but India eventually lost that Test match – and the other being in Multan Test in 2004 when he scored 194* runs and missed out on a well-deserved double hundred). Both of his innings mentioned above were an exhibition of his talent, composure and compactness. His footwork, temperament, passion and above all, his perfect shot selection was worthy of watching. Although he has no triple century against his name, best being 248* against Bangladesh, but his achievements show that he loves to play cricket for his country. The story of One-day cricket is no different for Tendulkar. He is already the leading run-scorer with over 16,000 runs and 41 centuries. He took 79 one-day innings to score his first hundred but since then, he has been scoring runs regularly at crucial times for India to secure some of the memorable victories at this level.