December 10, 2005. It was the first day of the second Test between India and Sri Lanka at what was then known as Feroz Shah Kotla stadium in Delhi, the crowd was waiting in anticipation. It was a cold winter＊s day and despite the fog that delayed play, fans waited for a milestone. So what was going on? Sachin Tendulkar was nearing his 35th Test century. He was going to break past Sunil Gavaskar＊s record for the most hundreds in Test cricket. A record Gavaskar had held on to for 22 years! The crowd was at the edge of their seats.
Then came the moment of truth. Sachin was on 99, waiting for the ball. A quick flick of his bat, the ball whisked away, he ran the all-important one run. As he came up to the crease on the other end, up went the arms in triumph. The fans who had held their breath, finally let out their voices collectively as the chants of ※Sachin! Sachin!§. One year after he drew level with Gavaskar, he had finally broken the record, which he still holds to this day.?
The uphill task?
Now, one must remember that this innings took place when Sachin was on an apparent decline. Between 2004 to 2006, his form was in question. His place in the side came under scrutiny, in fact once he was even booed by his own Mumbai crowd for scoring 1 run in 21 balls. Since recovering from his tennis elbow injury, Sachin was struggling to get going. Good knocks were few and far between. This was that one bright spot in a dark patch.?
What made this occasion even more special was the fact that he had Sourav Ganguly at the other end. Sachin and Sourav once formed the most feared ODI opening combination. In fact, they are such good friends too that each takes a personal joy in the other's success. Fast forward to 2008, when Sachin became the highest Test run-getter, it was Sourav who was batting with him.?
Getting back to this record breaking moment, one of the people at the ground was none other than Gavaskar himself. The legendary batsman came out himself to congratulate the Master Blaster and by Gavaskar's own admission, he was happy that a fellow Indian had broken his world record. Gavaskar went past Bradman's record of 29 centuries in 1983 and after 22 years, Sachin went past his tally of 34.?
Sachin started this iconic match really slow, he settled in to find his timing and middle the ball with his bat. Once he was in the groove, we got to see the Sachin of old. Domination of the bowling took over and even the wily old fox Muttiah Muralitharan found it difficult to contain him. Muralitharan did get Sachin＊s wicket the next day, but by then Sachin had made 109 in 196 balls with 14 fours and one six. India went on to win the game by 188 runs.?
Regaining glory?
Winning a World Cup, resurrecting himself from the ruins to become the highest run-getter in Tests, scoring 100 international hundreds and finishing off with the most international runs ever, all that would come in the future. By the time Sachin retired, he had the most Test hundreds with 51. Among the current players only Virat Kohli is close enough with 27, so nobody is breaking it anytime soon.?
?It has been 14 years since that knock put him on top of the world. For those who saw it on TV or were at the ground, there's no doubt anyone as forgotten it. One has a feeling that the Sri Lankan team may not have forgotten it either. This match was one for the record books and for Sachin＊s victorious stride back to the limelight.?
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