Sachin Tendulkar - 4 more unbelievable records of the God of Cricket
12 years ago, Sachin Tendulkar breached Mt. 30,000. He became the first (and only batsman thus far) in the history of cricket to reach that incredible landmark. It took a wobbly in-swinger from Sri Lanka's Chanaka Welagedara flicked to deep square leg for Sachin to reach his 30,000th run in international cricket.
On this day in 2009, Sachin Tendulkar added yet another feather to his cap 🧢
In his knock of 100* in the first Test against Sri Lanka in Ahmedabad, he became the first cricketer ever to score 30,000 international runs đź‘Ź https://t.co/2TBbDWhMe6
Records and Sachin Tendulkar are like butter and popcorn. They just go so well together and are synonymous. His longevity and consistency throughout his career have contributed to some insane records and numbers.
While all of us are familiar with the 100 hundreds, 30000+ runs, 200 Test matches et al., here’s looking at four insane records that Sachin Tendulkar holds that you may not be aware of.
Sachin has the most 50+ scores in International Cricket
While it may sound obvious that Sachin Tendulkar has the most 50+ scores across formats in International Cricket, the magnitude of difference between Sachin and the rest is truly spellbinding. Sachin has 264 scores of 50+ in International Cricket (145 in ODIs and 119 in Tests).
The next best is Ricky Ponting who has 217 scores of 50+ - That’s 22% lower than Sachin’s number. Among the active players closest is Virat Kohli, who has 188. Which means that Kohli needs to score 76 more 50+ scores to equal Sachin’s record.
To give this some more context, only 118 players in the history of international cricket have even played 264 matches. That's indeed phenomenal.
Most number of boundaries in Cricket
Sachin Tendulkar has hit 4076 fours and 264 sixes in his career, which totals 4340 boundaries in his career. The next best is Kumar Sangakkara with 3194 boundaries. This means Sachin has 35% more boundaries than the next best. The closest among active players is, again, Virat Kohli, who has 2539 hits. That’s still ways off Sachin’s number.
Sachin: One of only three players with 200+ wickets & 20000+ runs in List A Cricket
Sachin Tendulkar has 21,999 runs in List A Cricket – one of only three batsmen to have crossed the 20000+ run mark in this format – joining Graham Gooch and Graeme Hick.
He also has 200+ wickets in List A Cricket and is one of only three players to have achieved the insane double of 200+ wickets and 20000+ runs (again – Graham Gooch and Graeme Hick are the only others to have achieved this feat). We don’t appreciate Sachin Tendulkar the all-rounder often, don’t we?
57.84 – The 2nd best average in history of First-Class Cricket, behind Don Bradman
Sir Donald Bradman, affectionately known as Don, is still right on top with a First-Class average of 95.14 (having played for the following teams – New South Wales, Australia, and South Australia). Following in closely is none other than the Indian Master Blaster – Sachin Tendulkar (playing for Mumbai, India, and Yorkshire) – who has an average of 57.84.
While there are a few batsmen who have a better average than Sachin in Test cricket, when it comes to first class cricket there is just one player better. And that’s the Don himself.