1. Sachin Tendulkar
Profile
Born: April 24, 1973, Bombay (now Mumbai), Maharashtra
Current: age 40 years 218 days
Major teams: India, Asia XI, Mumbai, Mumbai Indians, Yorkshire
Nickname: Tendlya, Little Master
Playing role: Top-order batsman
Batting style: Right-hand bat
Bowling style: Right-arm offbreak, Legbreak googly
Height: 5 ft 5 in
Education: Sharadashram Vidyamandir School
Quite simply the best player, let alone batsman, the country has ever produced.
Perhaps the most complete batsman and the most worshipped cricketer in the world, Tendulkar holds just about every batting record worth owning in the game, including those for most runs and hundreds in Tests and ODIs, and most international runs.
If he didn’t have a signature stroke – the upright, back-foot punch comes close – it’s because he was equally proficient at each of the full range of orthodox shots (and plenty of improvised ones as well) and can pull them out at will.
There were no apparent weaknesses in Tendulkar’s game.
He could score all around the wicket, off both front foot and back, could tune his technique to suit every condition, temper his game to suit every situation, and made runs in all parts of the world in all conditions.
Some of his finest performances came against Australia, the overwhelmingly dominant team of his era.
His century as a 19-year-old on a lightning-fast pitch at the WACA is considered one of the best innings ever to have been played in Australia.
A few years later he received the ultimate compliment from the ultimate batsman: Don Bradman confided to his wife that Tendulkar reminded him of himself.
Click here to watch Sachin Tendulkar’s retirement speech after his 200th career Test match
COMMENTS