49 years, one bat: Sachin Tendulkar shares childhood photo on special cricket anniversary
Nearly five decades after posing with a cricket bat as a child, Sachin Tendulkar still has the same bat. The batting legend took a trip down memory lane on Sunday by sharing a childhood photograph in which he is seen holding the bat, revealing that it has remained with him for 49 years.
"It's about the first bat, 49 years later it is still with me!" Tendulkar wrote alongside the photograph.
The post comes on a date that holds special significance in the former India captain's cricketing journey. November 15 marks the anniversary of both his international debut in 1989 and the last time he batted for India in international cricket, in 2013 — exactly 24 years apart.
Tendulkar made his Test debut against Pakistan in Karachi on November 15, 1989, at the age of 16 years and 205 days, becoming the youngest Indian to play Test cricket. Facing a formidable Pakistan attack featuring Imran Khan, Wasim Akram and debutant Waqar Younis, he scored 15 off 24 balls before being dismissed by Waqar. The match ended in a draw.
Twenty-four years later, on November 15, 2013, Tendulkar walked out to bat for the final time in international cricket during his 200th and last Test, against the West Indies at Mumbai's Wankhede Stadium.
In what became his farewell innings, he scored 74 off 118 deliveries, hitting 12 boundaries. He shared a 144-run partnership for the third wicket with Cheteshwar Pujara and appeared on course for a memorable century before being caught by Darren Sammy off Narsingh Deonarine.
India won the match by an innings and 126 runs. Tendulkar's final Test concluded on November 16, 2013, when he delivered an emotional farewell speech at the Wankhede Stadium.
Tendulkar finished his international career with 34,357 runs in 664 matches across formats, including 100 international centuries. He remains the only cricketer to have scored 100 international hundreds. His record includes 15,921 runs in 200 Tests and 18,426 runs in 463 ODIs.