Wankhede Night Matches

Lore & Background

Tendulkar made his Test debut on 15 November 1989 against Pakistan in Karachi at age sixteen. He represented Mumbai domestically and India internationally for over 24 years. He was part of the Indian team that won the 2011 Cricket World Cup and was named Player of the Tournament at the 2003 World Cup.

In Their Own Story

The sun dips below the Mumbai skyline as the floodlights flicker on, casting long shadows across the green oval pitch. In the stands, thousands of voices merge into a single chant, rising above the hum of traffic from the nearby Marine Drive. A young fan clutches a blue flag, eyes fixed on the wickets at either end of the strip. As the captain walks out to toss the coin, the stadium holds its breath. The air is thick with anticipation and the scent of popcorn and rain. When the first ball is bowled under the glare of the lamps, it feels like history unfolding in real-time. This is where legends are made, not on paper, but in the roar of the night.

Reader's Guide

Tendulkar played 664 international cricket matches, scoring 34,357 runs. He is the all-time highest run-scorer in international cricket and the only batsman to score 100 international centuries. He retired from all forms of cricket in November 2013 after his 200th Test match.

Did You Know?

• Tendulkar was the first sportsperson to receive the Bharat Ratna, India's highest civilian award.
• He scored a century on debut in the Ranji Trophy, but not in the Irani Trophy or Duleep Trophy.
• Tendulkar was included in an all-time Test World XI to mark the 150th anniversary of Wisden Cricketers' Almanack in 2013.