|Happy Birthday God Of Cricket-Sachin Tendulkar|

In 2002 just half way through his career, Wisden Cricketers' Almanack ranked him the second greatest Test batsman of all time, behind Don Bradman, and the second greatest ODI batsman of all time, behind Viv Richards. Later in his career, Tendulkar was a part of the Indian team that won the 2011 World Cup, his first win in six World Cup appearances for India.He had previously been named "Player of the Tournament" at the 2003 edition of the tournament, held in South Africa. In 2013, he was the only Indian cricketer included in an all-time Test World XI named to mark the 150th anniversary of Wisden Cricketers' Almanack.

Tendulkar received the Arjuna Award in 1994 for his outstanding sporting achievement, the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna award in 1997, India's highest sporting honour, and the Padma Shri and Padma Vibhushan awards in 1999 and 2008, respectively, India's fourth and second highest civilian awards. After a few hours of his final match on 16 November 2013, the Prime Minister's Office announced the decision to award him the Bharat Ratna, India's highest civilian award.He is the youngest recipient to date and the first ever sportsperson to receive the award.He also won the 2010 Sir Garfield Sobers Trophy for cricketer of the year at the ICC awards.In 2012, Tendulkar was nominated to the Rajya Sabha, the upper house of the Parliament of India.^[19] He was also the first sportsperson and the first person without an aviation background to be awarded the honorary rank of group captain by the Indian Air Force.In 2012, he was named an Honorary Member of the Order of Australia.

In December 2012, Tendulkar announced his retirement from ODIs.^[23] He retired from Twenty20 cricket in October 2013 and subsequently announced his retirement from all forms of cricket,retiring on 16 November 2013 after playing his200th and final Test match, against the West Indies in Mumbai's Wankhede Stadium.Tendulkar played 664 international cricket matches in total, scoring 34,357 runs.

[YOUTUBE]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z1AEIyE2brI[/YOUTUBE]

A photo of Sachin Tendulkar in his first tour to Pakistan in 1989. He was out for a duck in the first innings of his.

Early on in his career, his extremely youthful appearence often belied the keen cricketing mind that lay beneath.

Sachin reacts after getting his century against Kenya in the 1999 World Cup. India would.

A young Sachin poses just before a Test series against Pakistan in India in 1989.

A young Sachin gears up to face the legendary Pakistani pace attack in 1989.

Jun 1990: Sachin Tendulkar of India in action during a net session at Headingley in Leeds, England.

With 100 international centuries,Sachin is far ahead in the competition with second placed Ricky Ponting at 71,followed by Jacqes Kallis.

In the 1990 tour of Pakistan, his first international series, a Waquar Younis bouncer broke his nose. Refusing medical aid, the young batsman wiped away.

Mathew Hayden: I have seen God, he bats at no. 4 for India.

Sir Donald Bradman: I saw him playing on television and was struck by his technique, so I asked my wife to come look at him. Now I never saw myself play, but I feel that this player is playing much the same as I used to play, and she looked at him on Television and said yes, there is a similarity between the two... his compactness, technique, stroke production... it all seemed to gel.

Sir Garfield Sobers: I have watched a lot of Tendulkar and we have spoken to each other a lot. He has it in him to be among the very best.

Barry Richards: Sachin is cricket's god.

Paul Wilson: He's better than Ben Hur.

Virat Kohli: Tendulkar has carried the burden of the nation for 21 years. It is time we carried him on our shoulders.

A placard at the SCG: Commit all your crimes when Sachin is batting. They will go unnoticed because even the Lord is watching.

Simon Katich: Sachin Tendulkar is an inspiration to all of us older guys, because he was written off a couple of years ago, ironically by one of our selectors, and the fact is he has proved him wrong.

MS Dhoni: I have joked before that there is a good chance that I might retire before Tendulkar

Sourav Ganguly: To me he will not just be remembered as a great player and a lovely human being, but as somebody who tried to learn Bengali for the last 14 years but never managed to do so!

MS Dhoni: Performance is one thing, performing back to back is something else. People may call Sachin Tendulkar a sitting elephant, but he's the best. He never said a word, and wanted to let his bat do the talking.

Adam Gilchrist: I now know what Sachin Tendulkar feels every time he bats in India.

Hashim Amla: Nothing bad can happen to us if we're on a plane in India with Sachin Tendulkar on it.

Shane Warne: Sachin Tendulkar is, in my time, the best player without doubt - daylight second, Brian Lara third.

Tennis legend Martina Navratilova: Sachin was so focused. He never looked like getting out. He was batting with single-minded devotion. It was truly remarkable. It was a lesson.

Shane Warne: I want to clarify that this nightmare thing was a joke. Sachin is the best batsman of my time... but I am not scared of him, or anybody for that matter.

Brian Lara: Sachin is a genius. I'm a mere mortal.

Dennis Lillee: If I've to bowl to Sachin, I'll bowl with my helmet on. He hits the ball so hard.

Peter Roebuck: On a train from Shimla to Delhi, there was a halt in one of the stations. The train stopped by for few minutes as usual. Sachin was nearing century, batting on 98. The passengers, railway officials, everyone on the train waited for Sachin to complete the century. This Genius can stop time in India!!