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Sachin Tendulkar retires from ODIs

Jay Pathak — Sun, 23 Dec 2012 06:32:03 +0000

Batting legend Sachin Tendulkar, who was struggling with his poor form, on Sunday decided to quit from the one day format of the game. In a letter to BCCI, Tendulkar has announced his retirement from the ODIs.
The development came just before the selectors were to pick the squad for the ODI series against Pakistan, starting from December 30.
“I have decided to retire from One Day cricket. I feel blessed to have been a part of the World Cup winning Indian team,” Tendulkar said.
Tendulkar has scored 18426 runs in 463 ODIs at an average of 44.83. He has also slammed 49 centuries and 96 half-tons during his 23-year old career.
Tendulkar is the only cricketer in the history of the game to score 100 international tons. He also holds the record of becoming the first man to score a double ton in ODIs.

Early years and personal life

Tendulkar was born on 24 April 1973 into a Rajapur Saraswat Brahmin family in Bombay (now Mumbai).^[20]^[21]^[22] His father Ramesh Tendulkar was a reputed Marathi novelist and his mother Rajni worked in the insurance industry.^[23] Ramesh named Tendulkar after his favourite music director, Sachin Dev Burman. Tendulkar has three elder siblings: two half-brothers Nitin and Ajit, and a half-sister Savita. They were Ramesh’s children from his first marriage.^[24] He spent his formative years in the Sahitya Sahawas Cooperative Housing Society, Bandra (East), Bombay. As a young boy, Tendulkar was considered a bully, and often picked up fights with new children in his school.^[25] He also showed an interest in tennis, idolising John McEnroe.^[26] To help curb his mischievous and bullying tendencies, Ajit introduced him to cricket in 1984. He introduced the young Sachin to Ramakant Achrekar, a famous cricket coach of Bombay and a club cricketer of repute, at Shivaji Park, Dadar, Bombay.

Achrekar was impressed with Tendulkar’s talent and advised him to shift his schooling to Sharadashram Vidyamandir (English) High School,^[1] a school at Dadar which had a dominant cricket team and had produced many notable cricketers.^[27] Prior to this, Tendulkar had attended the Indian Education Society’s New English School in Bandra (East).^[27] He was also coached under the guidance of Achrekar at Shivaji Park in the mornings and evenings.^[28] Tendulkar would practice for hours on end in the nets. If he became exhausted, Achrekar would put a one-rupee coin on the top of the stumps, and the bowler who dismissed Tendulkar would get the coin. If Tendulkar passed the whole session without getting dismissed, the coach would give him the coin. Tendulkar now considers the 13 coins he won then as some of his most prized possessions.^[29] He moved in with his aunt and uncle, who lived near Shivaji Park, during this period, due to his hectic schedule.^[27]

Meanwhile at school, he developed a reputation as a child prodigy. He had become a common conversation point in Mumbai cricketing circles, where there were suggestions already that he would become one of the greats. Besides school cricket, he also played club cricket, initially representing John Bright Cricket Club in Bombay’s premier club cricket tournament, the Kanga League,^[27] and later went on to play for the Cricket Club of India.^[30] In 1987, at the age of 14, he attended the MRF Pace Foundation in Madras (now Chennai) to train as a fast bowler, but Australian fast bowler Dennis Lillee, who took a world record 355 Test wickets, was unimpressed, suggesting that Tendulkar focus on his batting instead.^[31] A couple of months later, former Indian batsman Sunil Gavaskar gave him a pair of his own ultra light pads. “It was the greatest source of encouragement for me,” Tendulkar said nearly 20 years later after surpassing Gavaskar’s world record of 34 Test centuries.^[32] His season in 1988 was extraordinary, with Tendulkar scoring a century in every innings he played. He was involved in an unbroken 664-run partnership in a Lord Harris Shield inter-school game against Anjuman-E-Islam High School in 1988 with his friend and team-mate Vinod Kambli, who would also go on to represent India. The destructive pair reduced one bowler to tears and made the rest of the opposition unwilling to continue the game. Tendulkar scored 326 (not out) in this innings and scored over a thousand runs in the tournament.^[33] This was a record partnership in any form of cricket until 2006, when it was broken by two under-13 batsmen in a match held at Hyderabad in India.

On 24 May 1995,^[34] at the age of 22, Tendulkar married Anjali, a paediatrician and daughter of Gujarati industrialist Anand Mehta and British social worker Annabel Mehta. Anjali is six years his senior.^[35] They have two children, Sara (born 12 October 1997) and Arjun (born 24 September 1999). Arjun, a left handed batsman, has recently been included in under-14 probables list of Mumbai Cricket Association for off-season training camp.^[36]^{[relevant? – discuss]}

Beliefs

Tendulkar is known to be a religious person,^[37] and an ardent devotee of Sathya Sai Baba of Puttaparthi.^[38]^[39]^[40] He has visited Puttaparthi on several occasions to seek Baba’s blessings.^[38]^[41] In 1997, Tendulkar captained the Indian National side, playing against a World Eleven team, in the Unity Cup which was held at the hill view stadium in Puttaparthi, in Baba’s presence.^[42]^[43] After Sai Baba’s death, Tendulkar broke into tears when he saw the body of Baba in Puttaparthi, and cancelled his birthday celebrations.^[44]^[45]^[46] The cricketer is also known to celebrate Ganesh Chaturthi at home and frequently visits temples during night when it is calm and quiet.^[37]^[47] The cricketer has also offered his prayers at several other Hindu temples across the country.^[48]^[49]

Early domestic career

On 14 November 1987, Tendulkar was selected to represent Bombay in the Ranji Trophy, India’s premier domestic first-class cricket tournament, for the 1987–88 season. However, he was not selected for the final eleven in any of the matches.^[27] A year later, on 11 December 1988, aged just 15 years and 232 days, Tendulkar made his debut for Bombay against Gujarat at home and scored 100 not out in that match, making him the youngest Indian to score a century on first-class debut. He was handpicked to play for the team by the then Mumbai captain Dilip Vengsarkar after watching him easily negotiating India’s best fast bowler at the time, Kapil Dev, in the Wankhede Stadium nets,^[1] where the Indian team had come to play against the touring New Zealand team. He followed this by scoring a century in his first Deodhar and Duleep Trophies, which are also Indian domestic tournaments.^[50]

Tendulkar finished the 1988–89 season as Bombay’s highest run-scorer.^{[note 1]}^[51] He also made an unbeaten century in the Irani Trophy match against Delhi at the start of the 1989–90 season, playing for the Rest of India.^[52]

In 1992, at the age of 19, Tendulkar became the first overseas-born player to represent Yorkshire, which prior to Tendulkar joining the team, never selected players even from other English counties.^[1]^{[note 2]} Selected for Yorkshire as a replacement for the injured Australian fast bowler Craig McDermott, Tendulkar played 16 first-class matches for the county and scored 1070 runs at an average of 46.52.^[53]

His first double century was for Mumbai while playing against the visiting Australian team at the Brabourne Stadium in 1998.^[1] He is the only player to score a century in all three of his domestic first-class debuts.^[54]

International career

Early career

Raj Singh Dungarpur is credited for the selection of Tendulkar for the Indian tour of Pakistan in late 1989,^[55] and that also after just one first class season.^[56] The Indian selection committee had shown interest in selecting Tendulkar for the tour of the West Indies held earlier that year, but eventually did not select him, as they did not want him to be exposed to the dominant fast bowlers of the West Indies so early in his career. Tendulkar made his Test debut against Pakistan in Karachi in November 1989 aged just 16 years and 223 days. He made just 15 runs, being bowled by Waqar Younis, who also made his debut in that match, but was noted for how he handled numerous blows to his body at the hands of the Pakistani pace attack.^[57] In the fourth and final test in Sialkot, he was hit on the nose by a bouncer bowled by Imran Khan, but he declined medical assistance and continued to bat even as he gushed blood from it.^[58] In a 20 over exhibition game in Peshawar, held in parallel with the bilateral series, Tendulkar made 53 runs off 18 balls, including an over in which he scored 27 runs off leg-spinner Abdul Qadir.^{[note 3]} This was later called “one of the best innings I have seen” by the then Indian captain Krishnamachari Srikkanth.^[59] In all, he scored 215 runs at an average of 35.83 in the Test series, and was dismissed without scoring a run in the only One Day International (ODI) he played.^[60]^[61]

The series was followed by a tour of New Zealand in which he scored 117 runs at an average of 29.25 in, Tests including an innings of 88 in the Second Test.^[62] He was dismissed without scoring in one of the two one-day games he played, and scored 36 in the other.^[63] On his next tour, to England in July/August 1990, he became the second youngest cricketer to score a Test century as he made 119 not out at Old Trafford in Manchester.^[58] Wisden described his innings as “a disciplined display of immense maturity” and also wrote:^[64]

“He looked the embodiment of India’s famous opener, Gavaskar, and indeed was wearing a pair of his pads. While he displayed a full repertoire of strokes in compiling his maiden Test hundred, most remarkable were his off-side shots from the back foot. Though only 5ft 5in tall, he was still able to control without difficulty short deliveries from the English pacemen.”

Tendulkar further enhanced his development during the 1991–1992 tour of Australia held before the 1992 Cricket World Cup, that included an unbeaten 148 in Sydney and 114 on a fast, bouncing pitch at Perth against a world-class pace attack comprising Merv Hughes, Bruce Reid and Craig McDermott. Hughes commented to Allan Border at the time that “This little prick’s going to get more runs than you,

Rise through the ranks

Tendulkar’s performance through the years 1994–1999 coincided with his physical peak, in his early twenties. On the day of the Hindu festival Holi, Tendulkar was told to open the batting at Auckland against New Zealand in 1994.He went on to make 82 runs off 49 balls. He scored his first ODI century on 9 September 1994 against Australia in Sri Lanka at Colombo. It had taken him 79 ODIs to score a century.

Tendulkar’s rise continued when he was the leading run scorer at the 1996 World Cup, scoring two centuries.^[67] He was the only Indian batsman to perform in the infamous semi-final against Sri Lanka. Tendulkar fell amid a batting collapse and the match referee, Clive Lloyd awarded Sri Lanka the match after the crowd began rioting and throwing litter onto the field.

After the World Cup, in the same year against Pakistan at Sharjah, Indian captain Mohammed Azharuddin was going through a lean patch. Tendulkar and Navjot Singh Sidhu both made centuries to set a then record partnership for the second wicket. After getting out, Tendulkar found Azharuddin in two minds about whether he should bat. Tendulkar convinced Azharuddin to bat and Azharuddin subsequently unleashed 29 runs in a mere 10 balls. It enabled India post a score in excess of 300 runs for the first time in an ODI. India went on to win that match.

This was the beginning of a period at the top of the batting world, culminating in the Australian tour of India in early 1998, with Tendulkar scoring three consecutive centuries. These were characterised by a premeditated plan to target Australian spinners Shane Warne and Gavin Robertson, to whom he regularly charged down the pitch to drive over the infield. This technique worked as India beat Australia. The test match success was followed by two scintillating knocks in a tournament in Sharjah where he scored two consecutive centuries in a must-win game and then in finals against Australia tormenting Shane Warne once again. Following the series Warne ruefully joked that he was having nightmares about his Indian nemesis.^[68] He also had a role with the ball in that series, including a five wicket haul in an ODI. Set 310 runs to win, Australia were cruising comfortably at 203 for 3 in the 31st over when Tendulkar turned the match for India taking wickets of Michael Bevan, Steve Waugh, Darren Lehmann, Tom Moody and Damien Martyn for just 32 runs in 10 overs.^[69]

Tendulkar single-handedly won the ICC 1998 quarterfinal at Dhaka to pave way for India’s entry into the semifinals, when he took four Australian wickets after scoring 141 runs in just 128 balls.

The inaugural Asian Test Championship took place in February and March 1999. Held just twice, the 1999 championship was contested by India, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka.^[70] Eden Gardens hosted the first match, in which Tendulkar was run out for nine after colliding with Pakistan bowler Shoaib Akhtar. The crowd’s reaction to the dismissal was to throw objects at Akhtar, and the players were taken off the field. The match resumed after Tendulkar and the president of the ICC appealed to the crowd, however further rioting meant that the match was finished in front of a crowd of just 200 people.^[71] Tendulkar scored his 19th Test century in the second Test and the match resulted in a draw with Sri Lanka.^[72] India did not progress to the final, which was won by Pakistan, and refused to participate the next time the championship was held to increasing political tensions between India and Pakistan.^[73]

A chronic back problem flared up when Pakistan toured India in 1999, with India losing the historic Test at Chepauk despite a gritty century from Tendulkar himself. The worst was yet to come as Professor Ramesh Tendulkar, Tendulkar’s father, died in the middle of the 1999 Cricket World Cup. Tendulkar flew back to India to attend the final rituals of his father, missing the match against Zimbabwe. However, he returned with a bang to the World cup scoring a century (unbeaten 140 off 101 balls) in his very next match against Kenyain Bristol. He dedicated this

Captaincy

Tendulkar’s two tenures as captain of the Indian cricket team were not very successful. When Tendulkar took over as captain in 1996, it was with huge hopes and expectations. However, by 1997 the team was performing poorly. Azharuddin was credited with saying “Nahin jeetega! Chote ki naseeb main jeet nahin hai!”,^[77] which translates into: “He won’t win! It’s not in the small one’s destiny!”.^[78]

Tendulkar, succeeding Azharuddin as captain for his second term, then led India on a tour of Australia, where the visitors were comprehensively beaten 3–0 by the newly crowned world champions.^[79] Tendulkar, however, won the player of the tournament award as well as player of the match in one of the games. After another Test series defeat, this time by a 0–2 margin at home against South Africa, Tendulkar resigned, and Sourav Ganguly took over as captain in 2000.

century to his father.

Injuries and apparent decline

Sachin Tendulkar continued performing well in Test cricket in 2001 and 2002, with some pivotal performances with both bat and ball. Tendulkar took three wickets on the final day of the famous Kolkata Test against Australia in 2001. Tendulkar took the key wickets of Matthew Hayden and Adam Gilchrist, centurions in the previous test.

In the 2002 series in the West Indies, Tendulkar started well, scoring 79 in the first test, and 117 in the first innings of the second. Then, in a hitherto unprecedented sequence, he scored 0, 0, 8 and 0 in the next four innings, getting out to technical “defects” and uncharacteristically poor strokes. He returned to form in the last test scoring 41 and 86. However, India lost the series. This might have been the beginning of the “decline” phase in his career which lasted till 2006.

Tendulkar made 673 runs in 11 matches in the 2003 Cricket World Cup, helping India reach the final. While Australia retained the trophy that they had won in 1999, Tendulkar was given the Man of the Tournament award.

He continued to score heavily in ODI cricket that year, with two hundreds in a tri series involving New Zealand and Australia.

The drawn series as India toured Australia in 2003/04 saw Tendulkar making his mark in the last Test of the series, with 241 not out in Sydney, putting India in a virtually unbeatable position. He followed up the innings with an unbeaten 60 in the second innings of the test. Prior to this test match, he had had an unusually horrible run of form, failing in all six innings in the preceding three tests. It was no aberration that 2003 was his worst year in test cricket, with an average of 17.25 and just one fifty.

Tendulkar scored an unbeaten 194 against Pakistan at Multan in the following series. India declared before Tendulkar reached 200; had he done so it would have been the fourth time he passed the landmark in Tests. In meeting with the press that evening, Tendulkar stated that he was disappointed and that the declaration had taken him by surprise.^[82] Many former cricketers commented that Dravid’s declaration was in bad taste.^[83]^[84] After India won the match, the captain Rahul Dravid stated that the matter was spoken internally and put to rest.^[85]

Tennis elbow then took its toll on Tendulkar, leaving him out of the side for most of the year, coming back only for the last two tests when Australia toured India in 2004. He played a part in India’s victory in Mumbai in that series with a fast 55, though Australia took the series 2–1.

On 10 December 2005 at Feroz Shah Kotla, Tendulkar scored his record-breaking 35th Test century, against the Sri Lankans. After this, Tendulkar endured the longest spell of his career without a Test century: 17 innings elapsed before he scored 101 against Bangladesh in May 2007. Tendulkar scored his 39th ODI hundred on 6 February 2006 in a match against Pakistan. He followed with a run-a-ball 42 in the second one-day international against Pakistan on 11 February 2006, and then a 95 in hostile, seaming conditions on 13 February 2006 in Lahore, which set up an Indian victory. On 19 March 2006, after scoring an unconvincing 1 off 21 balls against England in the first innings of the third Test in his home ground, Wankhede, Tendulkar was booed off the ground by a section of the crowd,^[87] the first time that he had ever faced such flak. Tendulkar was to end the three-Test series without a single half-century to his credit, and news of a shoulder operation raised more questions about his longevity. In July 2006, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) announced that Tendulkar had overcome his injury problem following an operation and rehabilitation programme and was available for selection, and he was eventually selected for the next series.

Tendulkar’s comeback came in the DLF cup in Malaysia and he was the only Indian batsman to shine. In his comeback match, against West Indies on 14 September 2006, Tendulkar responded to his critics who believed that his career was inexorably sliding with his 40th ODI century. Though he scored 141 not out, West Indies won the rain-affected match by the D/L method.

During the preparation for the 2007 World Cup, Tendulkar was criticised by Greg Chappell on his attitude.As per the report, Chappell felt that Tendulkar would be more useful down the order, while the latter felt that he would be better off opening the innings, the role he had played for most of his career. Chappell also believed that Tendulkar’s repeated failures were hurting the team’s chances. In a rare show of emotion, Tendulkar hit out at the comments attributed to Chappell by pointing out that no coach has ever suggested his attitude towards cricket is incorrect. On 7 April 2007, the Board of Control for Cricket in India issued a notice to Tendulkar asking for an explanation for his comments made to the media.

At the World Cup in the West Indies, Tendulkar and the Indian cricket team, led by Rahul Dravid had a dismal campaign. Tendulkar, who was pushed to bat lower down the order had scores of 7 (Bangladesh), 57 not out (Bermuda) and 0 (Sri Lanka). As a result, former Australian captain Ian Chappell, brother of the then Indian coach Greg, called for Tendulkar to retire in his column for Mumbai’s Mid Day newspaper.

During this period from about 2002 to 2006–7, Tendulkar’s batting often seemed to be a shadow of its former self. He was inconsistent, and his big knocks mostly came in sedate, accumulative, uncharacteristic fashion. He seemed to have either cut out or lost the ability to play many shots, including the hook and pull and many other aerial strokes. He also developed a tendency to go without scoring much for long periods and become overtly defensive. While players such as Ricky Ponting and Jacques Kallis were at the peak of their careers, Sachin’s seemed to be in terminal decline. There were several calls from him to retire. However, after the 2007 World Cup, his career had a second wind and his consistency and form returned.

Return to old form and consistency

In the subsequent series against Bangladesh, Tendulkar returned to his opening slot and was Man of the Series. He continued by scoring two consecutive scores of over 90 in the Future Cup against South Africa. He was the leading run scorer and was adjudged the Man of the Series.^[

On the second day of the Nottingham Test (28 July 2007) Tendulkar became the third cricketer to complete 11,000 Test runs. In the subsequent One day series against England, Tendulkar was the leading run scorer from India^[93] with an average of 53.42. In the ODI Series against Australia in October 2007 Tendulkar was the leading Indian run scorer with 278 runs.^[94]

Tendulkar was dismissed seven times in 2007 between 90 and 100, including three times at 99, leading some to suggest that he struggles to cope with nerves in this phase of his innings. Tendulkar has got out 23 times between 90 and 100 in his international career.^{[clarification needed]} On 8 November 2007 he got out on 99 against Pakistan in an ODI at Mohali to the bowling of Umar Gul. In the fourth ODI, he got out on 97 (off 102 balls with 16 fours) after dragging a delivery from Gul on to his stumps, falling short of another century in ODIs in 2007.

2007/08 tour of Australia

In the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, 2007–08, Tendulkar showed exceptional form, becoming the leading run scorer with 493 runs in four Tests, despite consistently failing in the second innings. Sachin scored 62 runs in the first innings of the first Test at the MCG in Melbourne, but couldn’t prevent a heavy 337-run win for Australia. In the controversial New Years Test at Sydney, Tendulkar scored an unbeaten 154 as India lost the Test. This was his third century at the SCG, earning him an average of 221.33 at the ground. In the third Test at the WACA cricket ground in Perth, Sachin was instrumental in India’s first innings score of 330, scoring a well compiled 71, as India went on to record a historic triumph at the WACA. In the fourth Test at the Adelaide Oval, which ended in a draw, he scored 153 in the first innings, involving in a crucial 126 run stand with V.V.S. Laxman for the fifth wicket to lead India to a score of 282 for 5 from 156 for 4. He secured the Player of the Match award.

In the One-Day International Commonwealth Bank Tri-Series involving Sri Lanka and Australia, Tendulkar became the only batsman to complete 16,000 runs in ODIs. He achieved this feat against Sri Lanka on 5 February 2008 at the Gabba in Brisbane. He started the CB series well notching up scores of 10, 35, 44 and 32, but could not convert the starts into bigger scores. His form dipped a bit in the middle of the tournament, but Tendulkar came back strongly in India’s must-win game against Sri Lanka at the Bellerive Ovalin Hobart, scoring 63 off 54 balls. He finished the series with a match winning 117 not out off 120 balls in the first final,^[95] and 91 runs in the second final.^[96]

Home series against South Africa

South Africa toured in March and April 2008 for a three-Test series. Tendulkar scored a five-ball duck in his only innings of the series;^[97] he sustained a groin strain in the match and as a result was forced not only to miss the second and third Tests, but also the tri-series involving Bangladesh, the 2008 Asia Cup, and the first half of the inaugural season of the IPL.^[98]

Sri Lanka Series

Before the touring Sri Lanka for three Test in July 2008, Tendulkar needed just 177 runs to go past Brian Lara’s record of Test 11,953 runs. However, he failed in all six innings, scoring a total of just 95 runs. India lost the series and his average of 15.83 was his worst in a Test series with at least three matches.^[99]

Return to form and breaking the record

In the following ODI series against Sri Lanka, Tendulkar was sidelined due to injury. However, during the following Australia tour of India, he returned to fitness and form, scoring 13 and 49 in the first test before making 88 in the first innings of the second test, thus breaking the record for most number of Test runs held by Brian Lara. He also reached the 12,000 run mark when he was on 61. He made a fifty in the third test and 109 in the fourth, as India won the series 2–0 and regained the Border-Gavaskar Trophy.

ODI and Test Series against England

Tendulkar was again out due to injury from the first three ODIs of a 7-match ODI series at home against England, but he made 11 in the fourth ODI and 50 in the fifth, before the ODI series was called off due to the Mumbai terror attacks, the scoreline being 5–0 to India.

England returned for a 2-match test series in December 2008, and in the first test in Chennai, chasing 387 for victory, Tendulkar made 103 not out in a 163-run unbroken fifth wicket stand with Yuvraj Singh. This was his third century in a fourth match innings, and the first which resulted in a win. This was redemption for the Chennai Test of 1999 when chasing 271 against Pakistan, Sachin had made 136 with severe back pain and was out 17 runs short of the target, precipitating a collapse and a loss by 12 runs. He dedicated this century to the victims of the Mumbai terror attacks. Tendulkar failed in both innings in the second test, India won the series 1–0.

2009–2010

In early 2009, India revisited Sri Lanka for five ODIs, as the Pakistan series had been cancelled due to the security situation in Pakistan and the attacks in Mumbai. Tendulkar failed to reach double figures in any inning, before becoming injured.

India’s next assignment was an away series against New Zealand, consisting of three Tests and five ODIs. In the ODI series, Tendulkar made a 163 not out in the third match, an innings ended by stomach cramps that forced him to retire hurt. India made 392 and won easily and won the series 3–1. Tendulkar made 160 in the first test, his 42nd Test century, and India won. He made 49 and 64 in the second test and 62 and 9 in the third, in which India were prevented from winning by rain on the last day. India won the series 1–0.

Tendulkar rested himself for the ODI tour of West Indies, but was back for the Compaq Cup (Tri Series) between India, SL and New Zealand in early September 2009. He made 46 and 27 in the league matches before notching up 138 in the final, as India made 319 and won by 46 runs. This was Tendulkar’s 6th century in ODI finals and his third consecutive score of over 50 in such finals. India has won all six times that Tendulkar has made a hundred in an ODI final.

Tendulkar played just one innings in the ICC Champions trophy in South Africa, scoring 8 against Pakistan as India lost. The next match against Australia was washed out and he was out with food poisoning in the third match against the West Indies, as India were eliminated.

Australia returned for a seven-match ODI series in India in October, and Tendulkar made 14, 4, 32 and 40 in the first four games. In the fifth match, with the series tied at 2–2, Australia amassed 350/4 in 50 overs. Tendulkar made his 45th ODI hundred, a 175 off 141 balls. Just when it seemed that he would steer India to the large victory target, he paddle-scooped debutant bowler Clint McKay straight to short fine leg, with India needing 19 from 18 balls with four wickets left. The Indian tail collapsed, and they lost by 3 runs, being all out for 347. During this match, Tendulkar also became the first player to reach 17,000 ODI runs, and achieved his personal best against Australia, as well as the third highest score in a defeat.

In the ODIs against Sri Lanka in 2009–10, Tendulkar scored 69, 43, 96 not out and 8, as India won 3–1.In the Test Series, he scored a 100 no out in the first test, which was drawn, and 40 in the second and 53 in the third test as India clinched innings victory in both tests. India won the series 2–0.

Sachin rested himself for the ODI tri-series in Bangladesh in 2010. In the Tests against Bangladesh, he made 105 not out and 16 in the first test, and 143 in the second. India won 2–0.

In the 2-Test Series against South Africa, Tendulkar made seven and 100 in the first test and 106 in the first innings of the second test. In the course of the second 100 (his 47th Test Hundred) he achieved several landmarks, in that he had scored four hundreds in his last four matches and that the hundred against South Africa in the first Test was the first at home against South Africa. The century was also his hundredth score over 50 in International Test cricket, moving him to 92 international hundreds (Tests and ODIs combined). In the second match of the subsequent ODI series, Tendulkar scored 200 not out to become the world’s first person to score a double century in ODI cricket.

2011 World Cup and after

From February to April, Bangladesh, India, and Sri Lanka hosted the 2011 World Cup. Amassing 482 runs at an average of 53.55 including two centuries, Tendulkar was India’s lead run-scorer for the tournament; only Tillakaratne Dilshan of Sri Lanka scored more runs in the 2011 tournament.^[102] India defeated Sri Lanka in the final. Shortly after the victory, Tendulkar commented that “Winning the World Cup is the proudest moment of my life. … I couldn’t control my tears of joy.”

India were due to tour the West Indies in June, although Tendulkar chose not to participate. He returned to the squad in July for India’s tour of England.^[108] Throughout the tour there was much hype in the media about whether Tendulkar would reach his 100th century in international cricket (Test and ODIs combined). However his highest score in the Tests was 91; Tendulkar averaged 34.12 in the series as England won 4–0 as they deposed India as the No. 1 ranked Test side. The injury Tendulkar sustained to his right foot in 2001 flared up and as a result he was ruled out of the ODI series that followed.^[109] Tendulkar created another record on 8 November 2011 when he became the first cricketer to score 15,000 runs in Test cricket, during the opening Test match against the West Indies at the Feroz Shah Kotla Stadium in New Delhi.

Ian Chappell was not happy with Sachin’s performance after India’s tour of Australia. He says that Sachin’s quest for his 100th hundred has proved to be a hurdle for the entire team and has hampered their performance on the Tour of Australia. Former India World Cup winning captain and all-rounder Kapil Dev has also voiced his opinion that Sachin should have retired from ODI’s after the World Cup. Former Australian fast bowler, Geoff Lawson, has said that Sachin has the right to decide when to quit although he adds that Tendulkar should not delay it for too long.^[113] The selection committee of BCCI expectedly included Sachin in the national test squad for the upcoming series against New Zealand commencing in August 2012.

100th international century

Tendulkar scored his much awaited 100th international hundred on 16 March 2012, at Mirpur against Bangladesh in the Asia Cup.He became the first person in history to achieve this feat. Incidentally, it was Tendulkar’s first ODI hundred against Bangladesh. He said “It’s been a tough phase for me … I was not thinking about the milestone, the media started all this, wherever I went, the restaurant, room service, everyone was talking about the 100th hundred. Nobody talked about my 99 hundreds. It became mentally tough for me because nobody talked about my 99 hundreds.” Despite Tendulkar’s century, India failed to win the match against Bangladesh, losing by 5 wickets.

Return To Ranji Trophy (2012)

After getting out bowled on 3 similar instances against the New Zealand recently and hitting a slump in form, the master returned to Ranji Trophy to get back some form ahead of the England Series at home, in a match for Mumbai against Railways on 2 November 2012. All eyes were on Tendulkar, who was playing his first Ranji Trophy match since 2009. And he didn’t disappoint smashing 137 off 136 balls with 21 fours and 3 Sixes, to take his team to 344 for 4 at stumps on day one.

However, because of a poor form in the first two Tests in the series against England, and India being humiliated in the second match of that series by 10 wickets on 26 November 2012,some people have started to question his place in the Indian team. A report by The Hindustan Times said that Tendulkar had a discussion with the national chief selector Sandeep Patil, in which he said that he would leave it to the selectors to decide on his future as he is not getting any runs. This speculation, however, was later considered to be false.

Indian Premier League and Champions League

Tendulkar was made the icon player and captain for his home side, the Mumbai Indians in the inaugural Indian Premier League Twenty20 competition in 2008.^[122] As an icon player, he was signed for a sum of US$1,121,250, 15% more than the second-highest paid player in the team, Sanath Jayasuriya.

In 2010 edition of Indian Premier League, Mumbai Indians reached the final of the tournament. Tendulkar made 618 runs in 14 innings during the tournament, breaking Shaun Marsh’s record of most runs in an IPL season. He was declared player of the tournament for his performance during the season. He also won Best Batsman and Best Captain awards at 2010 IPL Awards ceremony.

Sachin Tendulkar captained Mumbai Indians in 4 league matches of second edition of the league. He scored 68 in the first match and 48 against Guyana. But Mumbai Indians failed to qualify for semifinals after losing the initial two matches. Tendulkar scored 135 runs.

In the 2011 IPL, against Kochi Tuskers Kerala, Tendulkar scored his maiden Twenty20 hundred. He scored 100 not out off 66 balls. In 51 matches in the IPL Tendulkar has scored 1,723 runs, making him the second-highest run-scorer in the competition’s history.

Narendra Modi Is Ready For The PM Post

Jay Pathak — Thu, 20 Dec 2012 15:18:12 +0000

Narendra Modi, whose hat-trick in Gujarat could possibly pitchfork him as a prime ministerial candidate of BJP in 2014, has always remained a leader with a difference, a personality you may love or hate but cannot ignore.

The 62-year-old former RSS pracharak is no ordinary politician and has carved out a name for development in a state that has always nurtured talent and entrepreneurial skills.

But Mr. Modi has more share of controversies and is yet to live down the stigma over the post-Godhra violence that claimed lives of over 1,000 Muslims in March 2002 months after he had taken over as Chief Minister replacing Keshubhai Patel.

In a state considered the Sangh Parivar’s Hindutva laboratory, the Chief Minister is accused of polarising the state on communal lines.

In fact, he is the most targeted leader in the current times with his opponents ready to go to any extent to hurl invectives on him.

However, he has admirers in equal measure in his party and outside. Mr. Modi made feeble attempts to woo the Muslims but the controversial BJP strongman has always projected an air of unconcern.

His critics say that Mr. Modi will always have to carry the taint of 2002 Gujarat riots after the Godhra train carnage for which he has consciously avoided expressing regret or offering any apology. In one recent interview, he had, however, said if he was guilty of involvement, he can be hanged.

Mr. Modi’s admirers, on the other hand, hail him as “Hindu Hriday Samrat”.

The situation is so polarised in Gujarat that Sonia Gandhi’s remarks accusing Mr. Modi of being a “merchant of death” had created a huge controversy in the 2007 Assembly Polls.

The description is said to have cost the Congress dear that the party shied away from raking up the issue of post-Godhra riots altogether in the current elections.

After 11 long years as Gujarat Chief Minister and his third consecutive success at the hustings, Mr. Modi may have propelled himself as a strong contender as party’s candidate for Prime Minister’s post in the 2014 Lok Sabha polls.

“No need of looking behind …FORWARD!….We want infinite energy, infinite courage, infinite patience…” Mr. Modi said on the microblogging site Twitter in the wake of trends that he was set to create a hat-trick.

It was interpreted in some circles as a subtle comment indicating his intention to be in the Prime Ministerial race.

In fact, he has created history by emerging as the first BJP Chief Minister to have third successive win at a time when the party is in dire need of a strong leader to get back to power at the Centre.

The election was different for Mr. Modi as it was for the first time that elderly Mr. Keshubhai, whom he had replaced as the Chief Minister in 2001, parted ways with the BJP and floated his Gujarat Parivartan Party to rid the state of an ‘emergency like situation’

Given the bitter parting of ways, the 2012 polls was the litmus test for Mr. Modi, who had consciously tried to build bridges with the minorities by holding Sadbhavana fasts all over the state.

At the same time, he did not give ticket to a single Muslim in a bid not to ruffle the feathers in the Hindutva camp.

Mr. Modi also had reached out to his core constituency by organising state-wide yatra by projecting Swamy Vivekananda as his ideal on his 150th birth anniversary.

In the wake of the 2002 riots, the then Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee had reminded him of his “raj dharma”, but L.K. Advani and the late Pramod Mahajan helped Mr. Modi to survive as the Chief Minister.

After that there was no looking back for the RSS pracharak who had moved to the BJP long back, first as organising secretary of the party in Gujarat and later an office-bearer at his headquarter in Delhi.

HP ENVY 23 AIO

Jay Pathak — Thu, 20 Dec 2012 10:42:38 +0000

HP ENVY 23 All-in-One Desktop is the latest AIO Cupertino based HP has lined up in this Christmas. It sports 23 inch edge-to-edge display with full HD 1920×1080 pixels resolution. Watching movies or playing games in it’s wide display is a pleasant experience. Powered by Intel Core i5-3317U Ivy Bridge processor the AIO runs Windows 8. DDR3 1600 MHz 4 GB RAM is supplied with this beast for ultra-fast multitasking. RAM can be increased up to 16 GB. Two DIMM slots are there. NVIDIA GT-530M Graphics card is bundled with this AIO for extreme gaming. You can play any game in it if you increase RAM up to 8 GB right from the beginning. HP has increased the size of HDD to 2 TB which is a sky of relief to many. Now you can store more movies, games in hard drive. 32 GB SSD reduce booting time and start up the PC in almost no time. Optical DVD ROM with DualLayer, Blu-ray support is there as well. Integrated TV-tuner turns the desktop in a TV whenever you want. You can stream media directly to your HDTV or other compatible devices using the HDMI out port. Beats Audio Amplified sound system is an added bonus to you. HP Envy 23 all-in-one desktop price starts at Rs. 71,990.

HP ENVY 23 AIO

Highlighting Features of HP ENVY 23 AIO

Intel core i5 Ivy Bridge processor with Turbo Boost
23 inch HD BrightView LED display
Full HD resolution
4 GB DDR3 RAM, expandable up to 16 GB
2 GB Graphics Card
2 TB SATA HDD
Optical Drive

HP ENVY 23 AIO Technical Specifications

Operating System: Windows 8 64 bit
Processor: 2.9 GHz 3rd Gen Intel Core i5 3317U processor
Chipset: Mobile Intel 7 series Express chipset (HM77)
Graphics card: Intel HD Graphics 4000
RAM: 4 GB DDR3 1600 MHz, Expandable up to 16 GB, 2 DIMM slots
HDD: 2 TB SATA HDD, 32 GB SSD
Display: 23 inch HD BrightView LED-backlit, edge-to-edge display
Resolution support: 1920×1080 pixels
Sound System: Beats Audio
Speakers: 4 Beats Audio Speakers
Optical Drive: Yes, DVD RW, Dual Layer, Blu-ray drive
Wireless Connectivity: Wi-Fi
Ethernet: LAN Gigabit Ethernet 10/100/1000
Chassis: Metal frame
TV-out: TV-tuner card
Card Reader: media card reader
Dimension: N/A
Weight: N/A
Colors: Black

HP ENVY 23 AIO Price in India

HP ENVY 23 is Rs. 71,990. It’s now available in Indian market.

Micromax A110 Canvas 2 vs Samsung Galaxy Note 2

Jay Pathak — Thu, 20 Dec 2012 10:34:26 +0000

Micromax A110 Canvas 2 vs Samsung Galaxy Note 2, before I say a word on this comparison I must say the comparison is completely unfair. I have been asked few times to compare these two crazy phablets of recent times. First of all, Galaxy Note 2 is a premium smartphone available at around Rs. 36k. On the other hand, Micromax A110 is more of a cost effective solution for Note 2. If you can’t afford Galaxy Note 2 you can satisfy yourself with Canvas 2. Nothing else! In all segments Samsung Galaxy Note 2 is better than MMX Canvas 2.

Micromax A110 Canvas 2 vs Samsung Galaxy Note 2

1. Performance

Built on Android 4.1 JellyBean platform Note 2 is now receiving v4.1.2 JellyBean in just a few months of time after the release. The phablet has been sold for more than 5 million units according to a report published by Samsung last month. Hopefully, the figure is more impressive now. It’s available in all major marketplaces and still doing well. Samsung is planning even bigger Note 3. However, note 2 is powered by Samsung’s own Exynos 4412 Quad SoC where Cortex A9 cores are clocked at 1.6 GHz and 2 GB RAM. Mali 400-MP GPU is coupled with Cortex A9 cores which result in furious processing speed be it HD games or anything else. You can enjoy multitasking. Run several applications at a time without experiencing any sort of lagging. In contrast to that, Micromax A110 is India centric smartphone powered by MediaTek MT6577 SoC that couples 2 Cortex A9 cores clocked at 1 GHz and PowerVR SGX531T GPU. RAM is just 512. Canvas 2 is good when you consider other smartphones of it’s range. No need to pick the winner here. It’s all Samsung Galaxy Note 2 here.