Legend Sachin Tendulkar inducted into ICC Hall of Fame
India's legendary cricketer Sachin Tendulkar was inducted into the ICC Hall of Fame at a ceremony in London. One of the greatest batsmen, Tendulkar was honored by the ICC alongside South African great Allan Donald and former Australian women's cricketer Cathryn Fitzpatrick. Tendulkar is the sixth Indian cricketer to become a Hall of Famer. Here are the details.
Tendulkar's contribution was immense
Tendulkar enjoyed a 24-year long international career and had a massive impact on the game. The maestro played 200 Test matches and 463 ODIs. He scored 15,921 and 18,426 runs respectively. He amassed 100 centuries across these two formats. Notably, as per the rules, a player can only be inducted into the Hall of Fame, at least five years after his retirement.
The master of the game
Tendulkar thanks his pillars of strength
"On this occasion, I would like to thank all of those who were by my side. My parents, brother and wife Anjali have been pillars of strength while I was lucky to have coach Ramakant Achrekar as an early guide and mentor," Tendulkar said.
ICC Hall of Fame: Tendulkar joins these Indian players
Earlier, former Indian hero Rahul Dravid was inducted in 2018. Prior to Dravid, spin ace Anil Kumble was honored in 2015. The likes of Bishen Singh Bedi, Sunil Gavaskar (both 2009) and Kapil Dev are the other Indian greats in this special list.
Legends Donald and Fitazpatrick left a mark as well
The other inductee, Proteas hero Donald took 330 wickets in Tests and 272 in ODIs. He was also South Africa's fastest bowler. His last international match came in February 2003. On the other hand, Fitzpatrick became the eighth woman to be honored. She won two women's World Cups and claimed 60 wickets in 13 Tests and 180 wickets in 109 ODI matches.
A Proteas legend!
Donald and Fitzpatrick react after this special honor
"The biggest shock when you open an e-mail like that - it says congratulations Allan Donald, you have been inducted in the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame! It hits you, because it is a prestigious award and something that you can't take lightly," said Donald. "To gain recognition alongside many of the games' giants is a huge honor," said women's cricketer Fitzpatrick.
