13 performances that gave Sachin Tendulkar 'The God of Cricket' status (Pre-2000)

England v India: 4th npower Test - Day Five
Sachin carried the hopes of the nation on his shoulders for 24 long years

Before Virat Kohli, there was Sachin Tendulkar. But Sachin Tendulkar, the phenomenon, still exists and it will remain for a long time to come. Sachin was an inspiration for two generations - even for people who did not follow cricket. As a cricketer, he captured the imagination of a nation and more.

His consistency and sterling performances throughout the 90's elevated him to god-like status in the views of his admirers before the end of that decade. Let us have a look at some of his pre-90's and 90's performances that brought him to the limelight and made him the phenomenon that he is.


World Record Partnership with Vinod Kambli in Junior Cricket

Tendulkar Kambli Junior Cricket World Record Partnership
Sachin and Kambli put on a world-record junior partnership of 664 in 1988.

Sachin, 15 and Vinod Kambli, 16 built a 664-run partnership in school cricket in 1988 - a world record at the time. Playing for Shardashram Vidyamandir against St Xavier’s High School, Fort, Sachin scored 326 not out and Kambli topped with 349 not out.

The partnership came during the semi-final of the Harris Shield, played at Sassanian ground at Azad Maidan. This made both the kids the center of attraction, and soon Sachin was selected to play for Mumbai's senior team at the first class level.

Although he was already a part of their squad in the 1987-88 season, he was selected in the playing eleven only during the next season. Kambli followed suit and even made his debut a couple of years down the line.

Century on Debut in all 3 First-Class Tournaments and List A cricket

Sachin Ranji Irani Duleep Debut Century
Sachin scored centuries in his Ranji Trophy, Irani Trophy as well as Duleep Trophy debuts.

Catapulted to senior selection by his impressive performances at the junior level, Sachin made his debut for Mumbai against Gujarat in the Ranji Trophy. He scored an unbeaten hundred in this game - his first-class match. In fact, he also scored a century in his debut List A (limited overs senior) game in the Deodhar Trophy.

He also scored a hundred for West Zone on his Duleep Trophy debut, a competition in which teams are selected according to geographical zones. In the Irani Trophy, a competition between the Ranji Trophy winning team and the 'Rest of India' team selected by the selectors, he was chosen to play for the latter against Delhi.

He even scored an unbeaten century in this match. For any young Indian cricketer, this is a quite rare distinction, and is as good as winning all the four grand slams for a tennis player in a year. His name was included in India's Test and ODI squad for what turned out to be their last full tour of Pakistan for another 15 years.

Debut International Tour - Pakistan 1989

Sachin Tendulkar Debut Pakistan 1989
Sachin impressed in his debut tour with his courage and maturity.

While his debut Test at Karachi was a dampener, Sachin scored his maiden fifty in just his second Test innings at Faisalabad and followed it up with a 41 at Lahore. But his toughest challenge came in the fourth Test at Sialkot, when India lost their first four wickets at a lead of just 112 on a fast wicket.

Pakistan was loaded with a pace-heavy attack consisting of Wasim, Waqar, Imran, and Zakir Khan. He was even struck on the nose by a Waqar Younis bouncer - and like the trend in those days, his helmet did not have a wiser.

He stood up, scored 57 and strung a 100-run partnership with opener Navjot Sidhu, and managed to draw the series for India - a big achievement during those days.

While the first ODI in Peshawar had to be abandoned due to bad light, the officials decided to organize a 20-over a side exhibition match for the spectators. Batting for the first time in a limited overs game against a full-fledged international attack, Sachin struck two sixes off young Mushtaq Ahmed and famously hit four sixes off an Abdul Qadir over, after the veteran had fired him up with some sledging.

India lost that game narrowly, and Sachin could not open his account in his first and only ODI of the series at Gujranwala. But his potential had been witnessed.

Maiden International Century at Old Trafford in 1990

Sachin Tendulkar Maiden Test Century Old Trafford Manchester 1990
Sachin became one of the youngest cricketers to score a Test century at just 17 years of age.

Playing just his ninth Test match, Sachin was up against yet another challenge on his first tour to England. Chasing a record target of 408 in the second Test of the series at Old Trafford in Manchester, India lost half the side for 127.

While a victory was out of the question, India were playing for a draw. Sachin and Kapil Dev were looking to stabilize things after a fifty-run partnership, but Kapil got out with the score at 183.

In came Manoj Prabhakar, who did the needful by playing out as many deliveries as he could. Having to survive two sessions, Sachin played his strokes and managed a decent strike rate. In the process, he struck his maiden international century and became the second youngest to do it at that time, just behind Pakistan's Mushtaq Mohammad.

Sachin scored an unbeaten 119 and India came within 65 runs of the target, without losing another wicket. His effort was applauded by one and all, and this was just the beginning of the tumbling of records.

This match was also the Test debut of Sachin's dear friend Anil Kumble, and the two would play over 350 internationals together over a period of 18 years for India.

Australia Tour in 1992 (Including World Cup)

Sachin Tendulkar 1992 Australia Sydney Perth World Cup
Sachin was an integral part of the team by 1991-92.

By the end of his first tour to Australia, Sachin had well and truly arrived. Playing all the matches in the series, Sachin's big moment came during the third Test of the series - the new year Test at Sydney.

With India batting second, Sachin came out to bat with his team in a rather comfortable position. Shane Warne was making his debut and Ravi Shastri at the other end was making sure that the young leggie would not settle down.

Sachin too played his natural game and attacked. A 196-run partnership was ended by Warne, who picked up Ravi Shastri as his maiden wicket, not before he had scored a double century.

Sachin forged useful partnerships with the lower order batsmen - with Manoj Prabhakar's assistance again being useful. Sachin finished on 148 not out and followed up this performance with yet another hundred in the fifth and final Test at Perth.

Sachin was also India's leading run scorer in the tri-series with 400-plus runs including four fifties in ten matches. Yet another highlight of the tri-series was his tight seam-up bowling to affect a tie, taking West Indies' last wicket in his only over - thanks to a brilliant catch by Azharuddin.

In the World Cup that followed (hosted by Australia and New Zealand), Sachin was India's second highest run-scorer and scored three fifties. In fact, amidst one of India's most disappointing World Cups to date, Sachin was the man of the match in both of India's only two victories in the tournament - in the matches against Zimbabwe and champions Pakistan.

Century at Wanderers 1992

Sachin Tendulkar 111 vs South Africa at Wanderers, Johannesburg on Nov 28, 1992
Sachin scored a century during India's first ever tour to South Africa in 1992.

In yet another first, Sachin, as well as team India, were touring South Africa for the first time ever in the history of the two teams. South Africa had just been reinstated, and India made the friendly gesture of becoming the first team to tour the nation since.

Batting second in the second Test in Johannesburg, India were trailing by 265 runs with eight wickets remaining when Sachin came in to bat.

Playing most of the balls, Sachin found little to no support from the batsmen, with only Kapil Dev and Anil Kumble being the other batsmen to manage scores of 20-plus. Sachin scored his first hundred on Protean soil and his 111 helped India get to a just about decent team score of 227.

Kumble's 6-wickets in the second innings meant that India's target was just over 300. Though the match was drawn, India has not lost a single match at this historic venue till date. The two players (Sachin and Kumble) were also part of India's first ever victory on South African soil fourteen years later on the same ground.

First ODI Innings as Opening Batsman vs New Zealand - 1994

Sachin Tendulkar 82 off 49 Balls vs New Zealand Auckland 2nd ODI 1994
Sachin scored a blistering 82 off just 49 balls in his first ever innings as an opener for India.

This performance came amid a rare overseas tour during the 90's, as India did not lose either of the Test or one-day series. In the second match of the ODI series against New Zealand in March 1994, India bowled the host team out for 142.

India's captain Mohammed Azharuddin asked Sachin to open the innings and he obliged. He did not discriminate between the opposition bowlers and attacked one and all.

His childhood friend Vinod Kambli - an attacking player himself - was having the time of his life watching all the entertainment from the other side of the pitch. A maiden ODI century was within sight, but Sachin closed the face of the bat trying to flick a slow left armer from Matthew Hart. Playing against the spin, the ball took the leading edge of the bat - resulting in an easy caught and bowled.

Sachin got out after scoring 82 off 49 balls. Though it wasn't his most challenging innings, it was crucial as he became the mainstay opening batsman for the next eighteen years of his ODI career.

He scored his maiden ODI hundred against Australia later that year, and has scored most of his 49 one-day hundreds opening the innings for India. His opening partnership with Sourav Ganguly is the most prolific and arguably the best in ODI history.

World Cup 1996

Sachin Tendulkar 1996 World Cup
Sachin was in sensational form during the 1996 World Cup, finishing as top scorer.

By mid-nineties, one thing was taken for granted. And that was that come what may, Sachin will score. Sachin lived up to this reputation on most days during the 90's. And the 1996 World Cup was no exception to that rule.

Sachin scored an astonishing 523 runs in just seven innings at an average of over 87 and at a strike rate of 86. He scored two centuries and three fifties, and only one score of less than 30 - in a match India easily won against Zimbabwe.

Two of his best innings came against the two finalists of the tournament. The first, a 84-ball 90 against runners-up Australia at his home ground in Mumbai went in vain as India eventually fell short by 16 runs at the Wankhede.

A similar result followed in India's very next match against Sri Lanka at Delhi, where even his run-a-ball 137 was not good enough as Jayasuriya's sensational hitting made Sri Lanka's 272-run chase easy.

But Sachin did not lose heart and carried his momentum into the knockouts, where a steady 90-run opening partnership helped India get to a match-winning score against defending champions Pakistan in the quarterfinal.

Chasing 252 in the semifinal at Kolkata, Sachin got India off to a steady start despite the early loss of Navjot Sidhu's wicket. India were 98 for 1 in 22.3 overs and Sachin was batting on 65.

The wicket had slowed down, and while Sachin ran off after playing a leg glance to Jayasuriya, the ball hitting his thigh pad. The ball had gone only as far as into the hands of the wicketkeeper Kaluwitharana, and by the time Sachin realized it, he had been stumped. A collapse followed and India lost another six wickets in the space of just 22 runs.

The match had to be called off due to crowd agitation and was rewarded to Sri Lanka. The crying face of Vinod Kambli - one of the unbeaten batsmen along with Kumble - while walking off the field, was the image of India's disappointment of the shattering of a World Cup dream.

According to Javagal Srinath, Sachin chose not to cry and focus on the next tournament. His World Cup dream was fulfilled fifteen years later.

Test Series in England 1996

Sachin Tendulkar 1996 Trent Bridge Century Birmingham Edgbaston
Sachin scored two centuries in the Test series in England in 1996.

Sachin was one of the senior batsmen when India toured England during the summer of 1996. His valiant 122 in the first Test at Birmingham could not help India avoid a defeat as no other top order batsman scored even 50 in either innings.

And while the second Test at Lord's belonged to debutantes Sourav Ganguly and Rahul Dravid, his 177 in the third Test at Nottingham is regarded among his finest knocks.

Batting first in gloomy conditions, India lost both their openers with the team score at 33. Sourav, batting at number three and Sachin at number four, batted confidently and their 255-run partnership put India in a commanding position.

The partnership was the beginning of a glorious partnership in Indian cricket, and while Ganguly scored 136 and 48 in the match (along with 3 wickets with the ball), Sachin scored 177 and 74, and aggregated 251 in this match alone.

England won the series 1-0, but Sachin's batting attracted Indian-origin as well as neutral fans from all over Britain. Sachin managed 428 runs in just five innings of that series at an average of 85.60.

Cape Town 1997

Sachin Tendulkar Century Cape Town Newlands South Africa 1997
Sachin played a sensational inning against a world-class bowling attack at Cape Town in 1997.

In his first overseas tour as India's Test captain, Sachin was facing a more experienced and even stronger South African side this time - with the infusion of future greats such as Gary Kirsten, Lance Klusener and Shaun Pollock.

India had a tough time in the first match, and South Africa declared for a mammoth total of 521 in the first innings of the second Test. Half of the Indian team was back in the pavilion with the score at just 58. Mohammad Azharuddin, next man in, decided to counter-attack.

Sachin played his natural game and was happy to play second fiddle. Azhar scored 115 before being run out after a 222-run partnership with Sachin. Sachin had to attack now, and he did so by cutting and pulling even the likes of Alan Donald and Shaun Pollock in all their pace and glory.

Sachin's 169 pulled India out of a probable follow-on situation. Once the threat of the follow-on was out of the way, Sachin decided to attack further, pulling Brian McMillan almost to the boundary, if it were not for one of the catches of the decade - by Adam Bacher at mid-wicket.

The year 1998

Sachin Tendulkar April 1998 Sharjah Desert Storm Australia
Sachin himself cannot recreate the Sachin we saw in 1998.

1998 was Sachin Tendulkar's year. He did not captain a single match throughout this calendar year and Azharuddin was back on duty. India participated in many multilateral ODI tournaments - mostly in Asia - through the course of this year.

But even in the five Test matches that Sachin played, he scored three centuries - two 150-plus scores and an aggregate of 446 runs in a series win against Australia at home, and a 113 in the first Test of the New Zealand tour.

In ODI's, Sachin scored a world-record 1894 runs in a single calendar year, including a world-record nine centuries, and seven fifties - all from just 33 innings at an average of over 65 and a strike rate of over 102. With the ball, he took 24 wickets at 26.50 and 14 catches as well.

Four of his ODI hundreds came in tournament finals that India won. Another one came in an ICC tournament knockout match against Australia, where he took four wickets as well. Two of the other hundreds came in virtual knockouts of triangular tournaments.

Sachin literally owned Sharjah cricket ground during this phase. His two unbelievable hundreds against Australia in the last two matches of the tournament - also called 'Desert Storm' - is well documented.

His two hundreds against an in-form Zimbabwe in another tri-series in the second half of that year in Sharjah, were also remarkable. The second of the two resulted in the first-ever tournament final that included a ten-wicket win.

Sachin became a nightmare for Australians that year. He scored centuries and took wickets against them wherever they met - UAE, India or Bangladesh. In the first match of a tri-series against Australia at Kochi, Sachin was handed the ball with Australia needing around hundred runs with seven wickets remaining. Sachin bowled leg-spinners for the first time, almost took a hat-trick and spun the ball as much as Shane Warne on that day.

His five wickets sealed India's victory, and convinced people more that Sachin could do anything. Besides being one of the best fielders and possessing all kinds of deliveries - seam up, off-spin and leg spin - Sachin would sometimes even throw with his left hand from close in positions, if the ball went in that direction.

1999 Chennai Test

Sachin Tendulkar January 1999 Chennai Chepauk Pakistan 136
Sachin's fighting 136 against Pakistan at Chennai in January 1999 came when all other batsmen were down and out.

The beauty of India-Pakistan cricket lies in its unpredictability. Pakistan's tour of India in January 1999 also lived up to its hype. In the first Test at Chennai, while the difference between the two team's scores was just 16 runs, a swashbuckling 141 from Shahid Afridi helped in Pakistan setting India a stiff target of 271 runs.

Indian batsmen struggled against the likes of Wasim, Waqar, Saqlain, and Afridi, and were reeling at 82 for five. If Sachin's 136 was among his top twenty, Nayan Mongia's effort in this match was certainly one of his best ever.

A hard fought 52 from the wicket-keeper batsman put victory within India's sight, with the team requiring just 53 runs with both the batsmen at the crease. However, Mongia pulled a good length ball from Wasim Akram, which got the leading edge straight to Waqar Younis at mid-off.

The hopes were still alive, with Sachin taking India within 17 runs of the target with four wickets still left. Sachin then tried to hit Saqlain Mushtaq's doosra - which he had not picked - over long on and was caught by Wasim at mid-off. Saqlain and Wasim took the remaining three wickets for just four runs, and Pakistan won the match.

Besides individual performances, the match is also remembered for a standing ovation from the Chennai crowd for the Pakistan team during their victory lap - a rare gesture given the tense history between the two countries. Although new, dependable players had emerged, people's faith on Sachin as the lone warrior had grown fourfold.

1999 World Cup Turnaround

Sachin Tendulkar 140 Kenya Bristol World Cup England May 1999
Sachin's 140 came during an anxious point for Sachin as well as team India.

The 1999 Cricket World Cup consisted of four rounds - the group stage, super sixes, semi-finals and the final. There were two groups with six teams each, and India lost their opening game to South Africa with average performances from most players.

Just before the game against Zimbabwe - which India was expected to win - Sachin was informed about the death of his father back home in India.

He rushed to Mumbai, and missed the Zimbabwe game to be with his family. His family expressed to him his father's desire of Sachin playing in the World Cup, but everything happened so quickly that he didn't get any time to contemplate.

In the meanwhile, India lost the match against Zimbabwe by three runs - thanks to a three-wicket over by India's nemesis Henry Olonga. Sachin returned in time before India's must-win match against Kenya.

He was welcomed by the team, but India had to do more than just win the three games remaining in the group stage. India also had to ensure a good run-rate, as South Africa, England and even Zimbabwe were pushing for the top three spots from Group A.

The points from this round would also be carried forward to the next one, but India could not afford to think that far at this point, and thus decided to focus on one game at a time.

In Sachin's first match back against Kenya, India were 92 for 2 in 21 overs. The team was going slow and this Kenya side had upset West Indies - who made it to the semifinals - during the last World Cup. They had even defeated India previously, but Sachin and the young Rahul Dravid - playing his first World Cup - put all that behind and focused on the game.

While Dravid kept rotating the strike, Sachin played his shots and would even play reverse sweeps during the course of his innings. He hit the ball in unusual areas and managed to score an unbeaten 140, catapulting India to 329 for 2, with Dravid scoring an unbeaten hundred as well.

India won the match by 94 runs. Dravid scored a successive hundred - 145 runs - in the next game against defending champions Sri Lanka. He, along with Sourav Ganguly (who was also playing his first World Cup) managed a world-record partnership, and the latter picked man-of-the-match award in that game, as well as the virtual knockout against home team England.

India made it through to the super sixes after a disastrous start, which cheered up the whole nation. Though Sachin and the rest of the team could not avoid losses against giants Australia and New Zealand in the super sixes, the team managed to beat the runners up of the tournament Pakistan, with Sachin scoring 45 and taking a catch in that game. Sachin - in the space of three-odd days - proved his love for his family as well as his country.

In all honesty, it would be unfair to consider a player above the sport. But whenever there is mention of the game of cricket, it would be more than unfair not to mention Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar.

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Edited by Kumud Ranjan