#ThisDayThatYear: Sachin Tendulkar's Desert Storm torments Australia
The 1998 tri-series featuring Australia, India and New Zealand was duly dominated by the Aussies. Australia were simply unstoppable throughout the series, however, Sachin Tendulkar turned out a force to be reckoned with. The Little Master stole all the limelight with a spell-binding batting display despite India's defeat to Australia at Sharjah. Here is how his innings got renowned as 'Desert Storm'.
Australia gave India a 285-run target
Batting first in Sharjah's searing heat, Australia put up 284/7 after 50 overs. The Steve Waugh-led side had the upper hand as any total over 260 was considered substantial during that era. Mark Waugh's 81 off 99 at the top followed by a scintillating hundred by Michael Bevan put Australia in the driving seat. Sachin dismissed the former before running out Steve Waugh.
India lost the match despite Sachin's momentous effort
A prolonged desert storm disrupted the play for 25 minutes, reducing India's target to 276 in 46 overs. However, Sachin Tendulkar wrecked havoc later on. As Team India kept kept losing wickets at the other end, Tendulkar firmly stood between Australia and victory. He slammed a blistering 143 off 131 balls, but his dismissal cost India the match by 26 runs.
Sachin owned the battle against Shane Warne
Sachin's prodigious knock was studded with 9 fours and 5 sixes. The high-voltage match also witnessed the famous clash of titans wherein Sachin dismantled the dangerous leggies of Shane Warne. The Australian legend looked clueless in front of a ferocious Sachin. Before India lost the match, Sachin propelled the team beyond the 237-mark. This secured India the all-important berth of tri-series final.
A ground-breaking year for Sachin's international career
Sachin was the leading run-scorer in the series, having scored 435 runs in five games at 87.00. Moreover, the year 1998 was a turning point in his career as he amassed 2,541 international runs with a record 12 tons, the highest by a fair margin.
Sachin recalls his 143-run innings
"Given the conditions in April, the temperatures are really high and you can feel the heat going through your shoes and socks. The first thing you want to do is to put your feet in the ice bucket," Tendulkar said in a recent interview.
