NEW DELHI: On the occasion of Sachin Tendulkar’s 50th birthday, the cricket fraternity extended their best wishes to the master blaster in their own way and some recalled the fond memories they had with the sports’ one of the best batters.
Former India middle-order batter
Mohammad Kaif also went down the memory lane to recall an incident how Sachin wowed him with his meticulous approach, way back in 2002.
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On his 50th birthday Sachin Tendulkar lists his best ODI 50s for TOI
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<p>The first knock listed by the Master Blaster is the 52* against a quality bowling line-up of Pakistan in a tri-series at Sharjah in 1991. The innings was played against the likes of Wasim Akram, Waqar Younis, Aaqib Javed, and Imran Khan.<br /></p>
<p>Sachin played a brilliant knock of 52* runs off 40 balls at a SR of 130 with 5 fours. The innings propelled India to 238/4 and helped them win by 60 runs. This win also broke the jinx of losing to Pakistan in Sharjah.<br /></p>
<p>Another special knock close to his heart is the 62 off 73 balls against the Proteas at the Eden Gardens in 1991. It was South Africa’s first match after their readmission to international cricket and it was Tendulkar’s first big confrontation against Allan Donald.<br /></p>
<p>Chasing 179 in 47 overs, ‘White Lightning’ blew away India’s top order reducing them to 60/4. But Tendulkar scored 62 runs off 73 balls at a SR of 84.93 with 8 fours and a six. India won by 3 wickets. Both Tendulkar and Donald shared the Man of the Match award.<br /></p>
<p>A neck injury to regular opener Navjot Singh Sidhu made the Indian management agree to Tendulkar’s request to open the innings and what followed was simply carnage.<br /></p>
<p>Tendulkar played a rampant innings of 82 off 49 balls at a SR of 167.34 with 15 fours and a couple of sixes. India won comprehensively by 7 wickets and Tendulkar was named the Man of the Match.<br /></p>
<p>Tendulkar famously revealed how he couldn’t sleep the night before the most fearsome encounter against Pakistan in the 2003 World Cup at Centurion. Pakistan scored 273/7 thanks to a terrific innings of 101 runs by Saeed Anwar.<br /></p>
<p>In reply, Sachin, playing against the tearaway fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar, Wasim Akram, Abdul Razzak, and Waqar Younis, played some amazing strokes and the iconic upper-cut off Akhtar for six. Sachin failed to score a century by just 2 runs but his contribution paved the way for India to win by 6 wickets. Sachin scored 98 off 75 with 12 fours and a six.<br /><br /><br /></p>
<p>Sachin’s first encounter against the West Indies was way back in the 1992 world cup at Wellington. It was not a good outing for the little master as he was dismissed by Curtly Ambrose with a beauty.<br /></p>
<p>But after 4 years in 1996 in Gwalior, Sachin perfected his record against West Indies, scoring 70 off 91 at a SR of 76.92 with 8 fours. India won the game by 5 wickets.<br /><br /><br /></p>
“I remember when I made my ODI debut in Kanpur, there was a sports day celebration at school and someone asked me to get a message from Sachin Tendulkar,” Kaif recalled in an interaction with PTI.
Kaif requested the cricket icon to write “two lines” for the children, and in turn he came with a 15-line message.
“Back in those days, you did not have a mobile phone with you, that you could record and send across anything. So, he wrote a letter himself,” Kaif continued.
“I told him, ‘Paaji you just need to write two lines’, but he went on to write as many as 15 lines to wish the school kids.”
“This highlighted the fact that if you ask him to do even a small favour, he would do it in a proper way,” Kaif added.
“He was a great player but an equally humble person. We say that when a tree starts bearing fruits, it bends down. Sachin saab has been like that for me in my career,” Kaif, who is commentating for Star Sports in the ongoing IPL, said.
“We all were lucky to have got to play with him and we learned a lot from him. He was a role model for everyone; not just me, but for (MS) Dhoni, (Virat) Kohli, Rohit Sharma and they all take his name.
“India was lucky to have unearthed such a great player and I want to thank him,” Kaif signed off.
(With PTI Inputs)
