The character arc of Sachin Tendulkar
A life drawn by Character Arc from the public record
Born on 24 April 1973 in Dadar, Bombay. Between then and now sit a Test debut on 15 November 1989 at sixteen, a first Test century in August 1990, a first one day century in September 1994, Bradman's record of twenty nine Test centuries equalled and passed in 2002, Brian Lara's Test run record passed in October 2008, a one day retirement in March 2012, a two hundredth Test in November 2013 and the Bharat Ratna. The line below draws the story so far, in order.
Tap the line to pluck it. Hover or tap any mark for its card. Drawn from the public record of his life; the sources are at the foot of the page.
Who is Sachin Tendulkar?
Twenty four years of turning up.
He was born in Dadar in Bombay in 1973 and made his Test debut against Pakistan at Karachi on 15 November 1989, at sixteen years and two hundred and five days old. His one day international debut came a month later. Beginning an international career at sixteen, in a country where cricket is followed by a billion people, is a weight that is difficult to describe and impossible to put down.
His first Test century came on 14 August 1990, at Old Trafford, unbeaten on a hundred and nineteen, at seventeen. His first one day century took four more years and came in September 1994, against Australia. In 2002 he equalled Donald Bradman's record of twenty nine Test centuries and then, in August of that year, passed it. In October 2008 he passed Brian Lara's record for the most Test runs.
He is the highest run scorer in the history of international cricket and the only batsman ever to have scored one hundred international centuries. He has the most player of the match awards in the history of the game. He retired from one day internationals on 18 March 2012 and played his two hundredth and final Test match on 14 November 2013, against the West Indies, at forty. He was given the Arjuna Award in 1994, the Khel Ratna in 1997, the Padma Shri in 1998, the Padma Vibhushan in 2008 and the Bharat Ratna, India's highest civilian honour, in 2013. His autobiography is Playing It My Way.
The moments
Sachin Tendulkar's timeline.
The 1980s
A Test debut at sixteen
Milestone, and it changed everything. Sixteen years and two hundred and five days old, opening an international career.
The 1990s
A first Test century
Milestone, and it changed everything. Seventeen years old, unbeaten on a hundred and nineteen at Old Trafford.
A first one day century
Milestone, and it changed his direction. It took him nearly five years in that format. Even he had to wait for it.
The Khel Ratna
Milestone. Three national honours before he was twenty five.
The 2000s
Bradman's record passed
Milestone, and it changed everything. The most famous number in the game, equalled and then passed.
Lara's runs passed
Milestone, and it changed everything. The Test run record, and a civilian honour in the same year.
The 2010s
A hundred centuries
Milestone, and it changed everything. A hundred international centuries. Nobody else has ever reached it.
Stop at the top, or keep going
Crossroads, decided.
The paths laid out: play on to two hundred, taken, or retire on the records. He reached two hundred Test matches, which nobody else has, and received the Bharat Ratna in the same month.
He left the one day game
Setback, and it changed his direction. Twenty two years after his first one day match, he stopped playing them.
The two hundredth Test
Milestone, and it changed everything. Two hundred Test matches. He was sixteen at the first and forty at the last.
The Bharat Ratna
Milestone, and it changed everything. The country's highest civilian honour, given in the same month as the last Test.
The line reaches today still adding to itself, which is why it is drawn now rather than at the end. What it has set moving is twenty four years of showing up under a weight almost nobody has carried, which is a more instructive record than any of the numbers on it.
What he wrote
Books by Sachin Tendulkar
- 2014
Playing It My Way
His autobiography, published after the final Test match of a twenty four year international career.
Your turn
Every line draws a unique story.
His carried a country's expectations from sixteen to forty without putting them down. Yours is already further along than you think, and drawing it takes about five minutes.
Sachin Tendulkar: frequently asked questions
What people ask about his line.
What is Sachin Tendulkar's character arc?
How old was Sachin Tendulkar on his Test debut?
How many international centuries did Sachin Tendulkar score?
When did Sachin Tendulkar retire?
What records did Sachin Tendulkar break?
Did Sachin Tendulkar receive the Bharat Ratna?
What is Playing It My Way by Sachin Tendulkar?
Where does this timeline of Sachin Tendulkar's life come from?
More character arcs
Lives that rhyme with his.
Sources
- Sachin Tendulkar, English Wikipedia biography, filed under living people.
- International Cricket Council career records.
- Government of India, Bharat Ratna, 2013.