On 15th November 1989, the sport of cricket got gifted with one of his biggest disciples as a 16-year-old prodigy named Sachin Tendulkar made his international debut against Pakistan in Karachi. The child prodigy had already made a name for himself by plundering runs in all forms of cricket right from school level to senior level leaving everyone in awe of his talent.
Hence, a young Tendulkar who once dreamt of playing cricket for his country at the highest level while practicing in the local maidaans (grounds) of Mumbai under the tutelage of Ramakant Achrekar, finally realized his dream. However, the youngster faced a herculean task in his very first game as he was up against a fiery pace attack of Wasim Akram, Imran Khan and debutant Waqar Younis.
On Day 2 of the Test, Tendulkar finally lived his dream as he walked out for the first time to bat for India in front of a packed crowd at the National Stadium in Karachi. The right-handed batter was immediately introduced to the rigours of international cricket as Pakistan bowlers were all over him right from the word go. Tendulkar hit a couple of boundaries to ease himself at the crease but was clearly seen finding it tough at the crease. His stay at the crease was ended on 15 (24) as he was cleaned up by a vicious yorker from Waqar Younis who picked 4/80 on his debut.
Tendulkar braves deadly bouncer in his 2nd innings
After a poor outing on his debut, Tendulkar immediately showed signs of greatness in his very next game as he registered his maiden Test half century after being hit on his nose by a deadly bouncer and bleeding profusely at the pitch. Following his injury, no one in the entire ground expected Tendulkar to continue his innings as he was asked to go back to the dressing room.
However, the youngster, determined to leave his mark at the international level, replied with ‘Mai Khelega’(I will play) and scored a graceful 59 laced with four boundaries. From there on, there was no turning back for the child prodigy who quickly rose through the ranks to become the greatest batter to play the sport after the legendary Sir Don Bradman.
Tendulkar retired as the most prolific batter in the game with most runs, hundreds, fifties and fours in both ODIs and Tests. It was on 15th November that Tendulkar stepped on an international cricket field for the first time and ruled it for 24 years of his life with his sumptuous batting shots.
