The 2011 World Cup was the last piece of Sachin Tendulkar’s illustrious jigsaw. On the fateful night of April 2 in 2011, when MS Dhoni hit that six to win the trophy, the ‘Little Master’ came running down the stairs of the Wankhede Stadium where he has grown up playing the game that he owned after a point.

Tendulkar was then lifted on the shoulders of his team-mates and carried around the stadium with chants of the famous “Sachin Sachin” reverberating across the amphitheater. It was poetic justice for a man who has bossed the game like no other for over two decades, smashing all records on the way and helping India scale unprecedented heights.

On his 47th birthday, the International Cricket Council (ICC) Cricket World Cup official Instagram handle shared his take on the 2011 World Cup triumph and for a moment it was nostalgia once again for his fans across the country, helping them forget the doom and gloom of the COVID-19 crisis for a bit.

“I was the highest run-getter for the team, and my contribution was worth it. In the end, what matters is that the trophy is in your dressing room.” Sachin had said on winning the biggest trophy in his sixth attempt.

“It was the most beautiful moment of my life on a cricket field. There cannot be a greater moment. To take the victory lap as champions was the ultimate feeling. That’s the best cricketing moment of my life,” Sachin added.

“Yes I was excited when I wore the India cap for the first time. But nothing matches 2011. The whole country was celebrating. Very rarely you get to see entire nation celebrating together.”

Tendulkar made his debut against Pakistan at Karachi in 1989 as a 16-year old. The rest, as they say, is history as the master batsman went on to play 200 Tests for India, scoring 100 centuries across Tests and ODIs. In 463 ODIs, Tendulkar scored 18,426 runs and in Tests, he has 15,921 runs to his name.

Desert Storm

Meanwhile, a blistering 143 scored against Australia in 1998 was voted Sachin’s greatest one-day innings in an ICC poll released for his birthday.

The 131-ball knock, with nine fours and five sixes, became known as the ‘Desert Storm’ after a sand storm in Sharjah interrupted India’s chase. Tendulkar took on the likes of Shane Warne, Damien Fleming and Michael Kasprowicz but his side lost.

Tendulkar’s blitz narrowly edged out his match-winning 98 against arch-rivals Pakistan in the 2003 World Cup group match.

“It was neck and neck” until the end, the ICC said in releasing the results of its poll.

Tendulkar, who played 200 Test matches and is now India’s biggest cricket legend in retirement, used his birthday to urge fans to stay indoors during the nationwide coronavirus lockdown.

“They encouraged me and they prayed for me. What did they pray for? That Sachin shouldn’t get out and I should be at the crease,” he told Indian broadcaster Star Sports.

“My wish for them is that they should also not get out. They should also stay inside the crease which means that they should stay at home, safe and healthy.”

Meanwhile the Board of Control for Cricket in India relived the master blaster’s unbeaten century against England in the Chennai Test in 2008 in excerpts released on its Twitter feed.

Tendulkar smashed 103 in the second innings to guide India to a six-wicket win.

BCCI president Sourav Ganguly, a former India teammate, and other past and present cricketers paid tribute to Tendulkar.

Agencies