It was the sultry day of 22 April 1998 when the two international cricket teams, Australia and India, in the desert town of Sharjah, UAE, competed in a match that produced one of the most memorable innings by prolific Indian batsman Blaster Sachin Tendulkar.
Such was the historic innings played by Master Blaster, as Sachin Tendulkar was fondly called, for his ability to take the attack on the opposition, that even after 25 years since his iconic performance, it continues to enchant and bewitch cricket fans and admirers around the world and particularly in India.
The odds were stacked against India even before the start of the match. It had found itself in an unenviable position—to beat Australia or finish with a better net run rate than New Zealand—the third team in the Coco Cola tri-series, to qualify for the final.
The Australian team at that time was a formidable side, with the likes of Shane Warne, Steve Waugh, Micheal Bevan, and a host of other phenoms who went on to win their country three world cups in a row.
Batting first, Australia posed an imposing total of 284 on the board. India had to score a minimum of 254 to qualify for the final—a total considered daunting during those times—when teams lacked self-belief in surpassing daunting scores and when T20 cricket was not even conceived.
During the match at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium, a sandstorm hit and play was suspended for around 25 minutes. This not only made the target more challenging for India but also added to the drama of one of the most memorable innings in ODI cricket history.
With the Duckworth Lewis method mandating India to need 276 runs for victory and 237 to qualify, Sachin Tendulkar entered the ground, focused and disciplined, and began his counter-attack, chipping away at the might of the Australian bowling attack, blow after blow.
Tendulkar went past his century in a jiffy and played with an almost supernatural intensity, smashing bowlers to corners of the ground.
Tendulkar's Desert Storm !!🌪️#OnThisDay in 1998 🇮🇳 Need 238 (46ovr) to Qualify for Finals.
— CrickeTendulkar 🇮🇳 (@CrickeTendulkar) April 22, 2023
SACHIN TENDULKAR did it alone With His Blistering 143 Runs.🤯
Tony Greig+ @sachin_rt🔥
How Old were you when #SachinTendulkar smashed This?pic.twitter.com/TSVwNVUYPH
India breached the 237 mark, ensuring their place in the final, which was to be played two days later. Tendulkar bettered his previous best of 137 in ODIs with a magnificent stroke, adorning his masterclass innings in an already eventful match.
Even though India had secured a berth in the finals, the job was far from over for Tendulkar, who appeared like a man possessed, engrossed in the task of taking his team over the victory line. Despite the challenging scoring rate, with India needing 38 runs off just 20 balls, brimming with self-confidence and appearing determined, Tendulkar believed that the Australian total can be surpassed.
However, in his bid to score fast, Tendulkar was caught behind on the last ball of the 43rd over, bringing an end to an otherwordly display of batting prowess, one that would seal his legend in the annals of cricketing history.
Tony Grieg’s commentary added an extra spark to Tendulkar’s stupendous innings. Grieg’s famous lines, “They are dancing in the aisles in Sharjah,” captured the electrifying atmosphere among the fans in the stadium. Grieg’s description of Tendulkar as a “whaddaplaya, what a wonderful playa!” memorialised the batsman’s incredible performance.
While VVS Laxman and Hrishikesh Kanitkar managed to score eight more runs in the next three overs after Tendulkar’s dismissal, India fell 25 runs from victory, demonstrating the grit and gumption of the Master Blaster in bringing India on the verge of a historic win and attested to his outstanding class that set him apart from other batsmen.
However, two days later, on his 25th birthday, Tendulkar scored yet another century, this time leading India to victory in Coca Cola Cup.
25 years after the iconic ‘Desert Storm’ innings, Sachin Tendulkar reminisced about the match and expressed his gratitude while interacting with his fans.
“I don’t think whatever I have been able to achieve would have been possible without your support, love & affection. That positive energy gave me the strength to go out and do what I did for India. The dream was to play for India, to lift that beautiful trophy – the birth of that dream took place in 1983. From there on till 2011, I only had one desire in life – to hold that beautiful trophy,” Tendulkar said.
#WATCH | On 25 years of his historic 'Desert Storm' innings in Sharjah against Australia in 1998, Sachin Tendulkar interacts with fans at an event in Mumbai.
— ANI (@ANI) April 22, 2023
He says, "I don't think whatever I have been able to achieve would have been possible without your support, love &… pic.twitter.com/aHrNaQKfrA
Cricket had changed a lot since those days in 1998 when Tendulkar produced a magical inning that got baptised as ‘Desert Storm’, but it was, arguably, a primer to what was to come next, with Sachin Tendulkar, with his sheer talent and ability, ushering the game into its arguably the most popular format: T20 cricket.
