Sachin Tendulkar: 36 and Still Breaking New Ground in Cricket

Sachin Tendulkar today became the first man to score a double hundred in One Day Internationals, surpassing his previous best of 186 and Saeed Anwar’s 194.

The man known as the Little Master struck 25 fours and 3 sixes in a blistering 147-ball innings that secured a score of over 400 for India against South Africa, a far from casual bowling attack.

The feat itself is incredible and a fantastic achievement in world cricket.  But coming from a man who is knocking on the door of 37 is nothing short of astonishing.

He still has an incredible hunger for the game and an eye for a shot that has never been matched.

Tendulkar is already the world record holder for Test and One Day runs and has long led world cricket’s batting with his preciseness, balance and sheer run-scoring ability.

With over 30,000 international runs to his name, he executes his shots with the simplicity and power that comes from a man who knows the art of batting inside out.

To put it another way, he does what any genius in sport can do: he makes it look simple.

Ponting might have more flair, and Chris Gayle more brute force, but to watch Tendulkar at the crease is to see a man who can spot a ball and dispatch it with the surgical precision that only the very best can achieve.

With 93 international hundreds to his name, there is a strong case that his career has surpassed even that of the great Don Bradman’s. Over the course of his 20 years in international cricket, he has led India from the front with dignity and enthusiasm.

Tendulkar is revered as a god in India and rightly so: there can be no other quite like him. His career cannot go on forever, but there can be no doubt that his legacy will.

Sachin Tendulkar, the world of sport salutes you.

This article was written by Jon Naylor for Half Volley, the half sport, half science website.