200

2961 ODI cricket matches have been played in the past four decades. For the first time, someone has scored 200 runs in an innings.

He definitely earned it.

At 36, Tendulkar hasn't shown signs of ageing, and his sparkling touch in both forms of the game has ruled out all possibilities of him checking out anytime soon. Fatigue, cramps and paucity of time have stood in the way of batsmen going that extra mile to get to the 200-mark. Tendulkar did cramp up after crossing 150, but he didn't opt for a runner. His experience of 20 years at the international level came into play in this historic innings, staying at the crease from the first ball to the last, never once losing focus. There were no chances offered, no dropped catches, making his innings absolutely flawless.

For my readers who don't know, Sachin Tendulkar is one of the greats; in my opinion, the greatest player in the sport today. When I started watching cricket in the early 90s, nobody played shots as beautifully and smoothly and as tactically well as Tendulkar. He was doing all that in his teens!

He has many records in the game. Though, there is one big flaw in his resume: The World Cup -- which will be played next in 2011 in his home country.

The stage is set. Let's see how the pieces move.

Oh, a sweet slice of time:

the crowd were on their feet as they watched him make history. It was all the more fitting for another reason because it was on this very day, back in 1988, that he and Vinod Kambli added a mammoth 664 - then a world record - in a school match.

Comments

[Tambi Dude]

"He has many records in the game. Though, there is one big flaw in his resume: The World Cup --"

Two of the greatest bowlers I have ever seen, Malcolm Marshall and Richard Hadlee also never won the WC for their team.