Master blaster’s 40th birthday

BORN TO BAT (1988): As a schoolboy Sachin scored a century in almost every innings he played. His record partnership of 664 with his friend Vinod Kambli in a Harris Shield inter-school match is still fresh in the hearts and minds of every cricket fan.UNSTOPPABLE (1988): Sachin Tendulkar is the only batsman to score a century in his first match in the three major Indian domestic tournaments — Ranji Trophy, Irani Trophy and Duleep Trophy. Sachin is still the youngest player (15 years and 232 days) to score a century on debut in Ranji history.

A TASTE OF TESTS (1989): At 16 years and 205 days, Sachin became the youngest player to earn a Test cap for India. His debut match was against Pakistan in Karachi.

BREAKTHROUGH SERIES (1990): Sachin justified the faith shown in him during India’s tour of England. At the age of 17, he became the second youngest player to score a Test century, hitting a match-saving 119. Tendulkar finished the series with an average of 61.25.

WIZARD OF OZ (1991): Records continued to follow Sachin during his early days. He became the youngest player to score a century on Australian soil with a mammoth 148 in Sydney. He followed it up with another ton at Perth, a century which he ranks as one of his best ever.TON OF RUNS (1992): Three years after his Test debut, playing in South Africa, Sachin became the youngest cricketer ever to score more than a 1,000 career runs. On the flip side, he was became the first batsman to be declared run out by a third umpire.

DUKE OF YORK (1992): Sachin earned the distinction of becoming the first overseas-born player to represent Yorkshire in the English County Championship.

HOME HERO (1993): Tendulkar had to wait four years after his debut to score a century at home, but when it came it was one of his most memorable and dominating. His innings of 165 in Madras against England was studded with 24 fours and a six.

BOWLING ‘EM OVER (1993): Sachin showed he couldn’t just bat, but do magic with the ball as well. He added another feather in his cap when he bowled India to victory in the Hero Cup final against South Africa by giving away just three runs in the last over.

WORLD CUP SPLASH (1996): As with everything else in the game of cricket, Sachin would also come to dominate records in the World Cup. Playing the tournament for the second time, he topped the batting averages (87.16) as India were knocked out in the semi-finals.CAPTAIN’S KNOCK (1996): Sachin was appointed the captain of the Indian cricket team for the first time. It would prove to be his Achilles heel.

BEST IN THE BUSINESS (1997): Sachin’s growing reputation got a major boost when the respected Wisden Almanack adjudged him the Cricketer of the Year. Moreover, just eight years since his Test debut, Sachin received India’s highest sporting honour, the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna.

A YEAR TO REMEMBER (1998): Sachin was at his best in both Tests and ODIs. He scored centuries in three consecutive Tests against the touring Australians. In ODIs, he hammered nine centuries in 12 months, to take his career tally past 18 — the record at the time. He also became the fifth player in ODI history to score more than 7,000 runs.

HITTING IT OFF WITH THE DON (1998): Sachin met the late Sir Don Bradman during his 90th birthday celebrations. The Australian legend said he saw a lot of himself in the Indian maestro.

MAKE IT A DOUBLE (1999): Sachin showed he couldn’t just score quickly, but dig in as well. He scored his first Test double century (217 against New Zealand), also notching up 5,000 runs during the same year. In ODIs, he made the highest score by an Indian at the time — 186 not out. He was also made the captain of the Indian side for the second time in his career. He received the Padma Shri as well.

BEST DOWN UNDER (2004): Sachin inspired the Indian team to a rare 1-1 draw in Australia. He struck an unbeaten 241 in the fourth Test in Sydney, his highest first-class score at the time. However, problems with a tennis elbow cause him to miss must of the action in the rest of the year.LORD OF THE TEST RING (2005): Sachin overhauled his childhood idol Sunil Gavaskar’s record for most Test centuries by scoring his 35th hundred. On the way, he also became the fifth batsman in Test history to score 10,000 runs and only the third batsman to score a century against all Test-playing nations.

LORD OF THE ODI RING (2005): Sachin’s aggregate in ODIs rose to 13,000 runs and he also surpassed former Pakistan all-rounder Wasim Akram’s record for most ODI appearances by playing in his 357th match.

REACHING NEW HEIGHTS (2006): Sachin played his 132nd Test, the most by any Indian ever, at his home ground in Mumbai.

TRULY ON TOP OF THE WORLD (2008): Sachin secured the last major record remaining in cricket by becoming the highest run-scorer in Tests. He took his tally up to 12,037 runs during a match against Australia in Mohali. Sachin received the Padma Vibhushan, India’s second highest civilian award.45 ODI TONS (2009): Sachin continued to fight in an otherwise lean year blighted by injuries and form issues. But he managed to show his might and prowess in one match against Australia in which he scored his 45th ODI ton, 17,000th ODI run and almost got India to chase down 350 runs.

AWESOME FOURSOME (2010): Sachin became one of the few players to have scored four centuries in as many consecutive Test matches. The first two came against Bangladesh, while the others were scored against South Africa. His Test century count had now risen to 47.

DOUBLE DHAMAKA (2010): It had been spoken about for a few years, but no batsman had managed to get it. It was only fitting then that Sachin Tendulkar should push the envelope once again by scoring the first ODI double century, a 200 not out against South Africa.