3 records that Sachin Tendulkar surprisingly does not own
Talk about any batting record in Tests or ODIs, and you will find the name of Sachin Tendulkar either on the top or in the top five of almost each and every list. The 'Master Blaster' broke numerous records during his playing career and owned many of them for a long period.
After arriving on the scene in the last decade, Virat Kohli has broken a few of Tendulkar’s records, but the Little Master still owns many of the landmarks. He is the highest run-scorer in Tests and ODIs and was the first batsman to score a double-century in ODIs (in men’s cricket). Tendulkar also made most the appearances in two formats of the game.
However, Tendulkar surprisingly doesn't own a few significant batting records. Here, we take a look at the top three famous records that do not belong to the Mumbai Magician:
1. Most balls faced in Test career
Tendulkar may have played the most Test matches (200) in his career, but he did not play the most balls in the longest format of the game. It is Rahul Dravid, who played 164 Tests – 36 fewer than Tendulkar – who holds this record.
Dravid sits on the top of the list by virtue of facing 31258 deliveries in his career while Tendulkar played 29,437 balls, 1821 fewer than Dravid. Tendulkar batted 329 times in Tests while Dravid came out to bat on 286 occasions.
2. Highest batting average for India in Tests
Ask anyone the name of the batsman who has the best batting average for India, and nine out of 10 people will say Tendulkar. A few might say Virat Kohli, Rahul Dravid or Sunil Gavaskar. Maybe even VVS Laxman.
But the correct answer is Vinod Kambli. Kambli, the childhood friend of Tendulkar's, holds the record of best average for India i.e. 54.20.
Kambli scored 1084 runs in 17 Tests from 21 innings, which included four centuries (two consecutive double-centuries) and three half-centuries.
Tendulkar has the second-best average for India as he scored 15921 runs at 53.78. Virat Kohli comes next on the list with an average of 53.76, and could possibly overtake Kambli in 2019 itself.
3. Triple-century for India
Tendulkar may have become the first batsman on the planet to score a double-century in ODIs (men’s cricket), but he could never score a triple-century in Tests. His highest score in the longest format of the game is 248*, which came against Bangladesh in 2004.
At the start of the same year, Tendulkar leapfrogged his own best score of 217 when he scored 241* against Australia in Sydney in January. He then recorded his highest Test score against Bangladesh in December 2004.
It was in 2004 itself that Virender Sehwag became the first Indian batsman to score a triple-century in Tests, which came against Pakistan. In 2016, Karun Nair joined the elite list and became the second Indian batsmen to achieve the same milestone.