NEW DELHI: March 27, 1994, will go down in history as the rebirth of
Sachin Tendulkar
, as on this day 30 years ago, the 'Master Blaster' accidentally opened for
Team India
in an ODI against
New Zealand
in Auckland after regular opener
Navjot Singh Sidhu
missed the game due to a stiff neck.
Skipper
Mohammad Azharuddin
's decision to ask Tendulkar to open turned out to be the turning point in the legendary batter's career.
Tendulkar, who had previously participated in 69 one-day internationals (
ODIs
) and amassed 1758 runs at an average of 30.84, seized the opportunity with gusto, smacking 82 off just 49 balls, hitting 15 fours and two sixes at a strike-rate of 167.35.
Full HD.Sachin First ODI match as Opener.82 runs smashed in 49 balls. kambli played brilliant knock.
Chasing 143, India beat New Zealand by 7 wickets, riding on Tendulkar's 82, in the 24th over of the game.
It was just the start of an historic career and post that Tendulkar opened the innings in 344 ODIs and made 15,310 runs at an average of 48.29. 45 of his 49 ODI hundreds also came at the top of the order.
Tendulkar and
Sourav Ganguly
forged one of the most formidable opening partnerships in the annals of ODI cricket between 1996 and 2007.
Over the course of 136 innings, they shared the crease, remaining undefeated twice while amassing a staggering 6,609 runs at an impressive average of 49.32, with the highest partnership of 258 runs. Their partnership comprised 21 century stands and 23 fifty-plus partnerships, solidifying their status as one of the most prolific opening pairs in the history of the game.
Following closely behind are Australia's
Adam Gilchrist
and
Matthew Hayden
, who notched up 5,372 runs from 114 innings, making them the second most successful opening pair in ODI cricket.
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