WATCH: When Sachin Tendulkar lit up the IPL with some audacious strokemaking
Sachin Tendulkar may have largely refrained from being around India’s T20I setup during his playing days to give youngsters a go but the legendary batter certainly yield his willow to good effect in the IPL.
Tendulkar had a significant IPL career to his name for Mumbai Indians (MI) in the first six editions of the league. He struck 2,334 runs from his 78 games with an average of 34.83 and strike-rate of 119.81.
The Master Blaster’s IPL career tally included 13 half-centuries and one memorable hundred which he hit in the 2011 season against the now-disbanded Kochi Tuskers Kerala.
But arguably an even better knock from Tendulkar’s bat in the IPL came during the following season when he smashed the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) at his den – the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai – for a pivotal top-order knock that contributed to his team’s victory in a low-scoring thriller.
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Sachin Tendulkar had a significant IPL career with Mumbai Indians (MI).
When Sachin Tendulkar took the CSK attack to the cleaners
Not the easiest bowling line-up to get away, CSK had the likes of Ben Hilfenhaus, Dwayne Bravo, Albie Morkel and spin twins Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja up their ranks.
With a shrewd captain like MS Dhoni at the helm for the opposition, MI had their work cut out chasing the score of 174.
But Sachin Tendulkar took the onus upon himself and played a fantastic innings of 74 from 44 deliveries. The batting giant helped MI build a solid foundation through their chase in a second-wicket partnership of 126 runs with Rohit Sharma (60).
Tendulkar’s majestic knock included as many as eleven fours and a maximum as he propelled MI to a win that helped them progress in the tournament.
Here are some highlights from that Sachin Tendulkar innings:
Some of Sachin Tendulkar’s IPL innings leave his fans thinking what if he had played more T20I cricket for India? The legend featured in India’s maiden T20I outing back in 2006 in South Africa but never played the format in national jersey again.
When India struggled to cope against the bouncer ploy during the respective Super 8 stages of both the 2009 and 2010 T20 World Cups in England and West Indies, it was felt in certain corners that they missed the presence of a technically correct player like Tendulkar.