5 biggest Indian losses under Sachin Tendulkar
Arguably, the most revered cricketer of his generation, Sachin Tendulkar was not a player, he was an emotion. He was the collective consciousness of India's pride.
Rising to greatness, the Master Blaster broke records as if they were his for the taking. Whenever he went out to bat, Tendulkar, carried the hopes of an entire nation on his shoulder.
Pressure is a double-edged sword, it can either bog you down, or it can liberate you. Sachin liberated the entire nation, they prayed with him, they batted with him, the believed with him.
Then in 1996, Team India's captaincy was thrust upon the most celebrated batsman in the world. For a player who was well beyond comparisons, Tendulkar's reign as a captain will always be a blot on his record.
He won just four Test matches out of 25 as a skipper and out of 73 ODIs played under his leadership, only 23 were won.
Now let's have a look at the 5 most shocking results under the captaincy of Sachin Tendulkar.
India vs Pakistan, 4th ODI of Sahara Cup at Toronto, Canada (1996)
"Cricket is a pressure game and when it comes to an India-Pakistan match the pressure is doubled" - Imran Khan
Pakistan are mercurial, flaky, unfathomable and India are elegant, imperious and rock stars at home. So, whenever India and Pakistan lock horns, it turns out to be the most volatile game in world cricket.
The BCCI and PCB signed a five-year agreement to participate in the Sahara Cup, a bilateral ODI series between India and Pakistan to be staged from 1996 to 2000 in Canada.
The series was called off in 1999 after India suspended all cricketing ties with Pakistan as the diplomatic relations between the two countries worsened.
Pakistan won the series twice, in 1996 and 1998. Out of a total of 15 ODIs played, Pakistan won 8 and India emerged victorious in 7.
However, India's most painful loss of the series came on 21st September 1996, under Sachin Tendulkar's leadership. It was the 4th ODI of the 5-match series and India came into the match with a 2-1 series lead.
India won the toss and opted to field and riding on Ijaz Ahmed's 90, Pakistan posted 258/8 in 50 overs.
Chasing 259, the Men in Blue lost the plot right from the onset. Wasim Akram got rid of openers Nayan Mongia (0) and Sachin Tendulkar (3) cheaply before Saqlain Mushtaq wreaked havoc and India were 161 all out in 39.2 overs.
India had to pay a heavy price for that batting collapse. They faltered in the 5th ODI as well and lost the opening edition of Sahara Cup to arch-rivals Pakistan 3-2.