Sachin Tendulkar

Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar, (born April 24, 1973), is an Indian cricket player. He is widely regarded as the best cricket batsman currently playing the game, and in the opinion of many, not least Don Bradman himself, possibly even the greatest batsman since the Don retired in 1948. In fact the Don is reported to have said, "He (Sachin) reminds me of myself (the Don)".

Born in Mumbai (previously called Bombay) into a middle-class family, he played his first international match at the young age of 16 against Pakistan and the fiery pace of Wasim Akram[?] and Waqar Younis[?]. In one day cricket[?], he holds several records including most runs and maximum number of centuries. He has scored more than 12,000 runs in ODIs and more than eight thousand in Tests. He has 34 centuries in ODI's and 31 centuries in Test cricket, at an average of almost 58, well above the 50 average that distinguishes an international player as amongst the game's greats. All this has been achieved before he has even reached 30 years of age. He is also a reasonable bowler, and has a wide range of deliveries, ranging from seam up to offspin to leg spin. He has to his credit more than 100 wickets in ODIs in addition to his impressive batting record. He continues to perform well under the massive weight of expectation of hundreds of millions of Indian cricket followers, and was named Player Of The Tournament in the 2003 Cricket World Cup.

Sachin's fame in his own country is such that he is virtually a prisoner in his own home, with his appearances in public causing near-riots amongst fevered fans. He reportedly takes his car for late-night drives around the city as a one of the few chances to escape the protective bubble he is forced to exist within.

Sachin is married to his childhood friend Dr. Anjali and has a son Arjun (3) and a daughter Sara (5).