Top 5 Incredible Knocks by Sachin Tendulkar in IPL

Former India cricketer Sachin Tendulkar is widely regarded as the ‘God of Cricket’ due to his unprecedented batting figures. In his 24 years of cricketing career, he achieved a lot with his bat. In One-Day Internationals (ODIs) and Tests, he is still the highest run-scorer after more than nine years of his retirement.

Serving the nation for 24 years, the ‘Master Blaster’ played a crucial role in uplifting the standard of the sport in the country. 

In 2008, The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) launched the Indian Premier League (IPL) and Tendulkar was roped in by Mumbai Indians (MI) to lead the side. In the initial two seasons, he couldn’t perform according to his reputation, and it affected MI’s performance and they failed to see themselves in the knockout round.

In the third instalment of the league, he looked solid with his bat and clinched the Orange Cap, amassing 618 runs with five fifties in 15 matches at a strike rate of 132.61. In his six-year career for MI, the veteran played excellently and carved out some remarkable knocks for his team.

Talking more about it, here are the top five IPL innings of Sachin Tendulkar

5. 68 off 45 vs Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), 2009

In the second edition of the IPL, MI locked horns with the Bendon McCullum-led Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), at St George’s Park, Port Elizabeth. At the toss, luck favoured Mumbai as their skipper Tendulkar won the toss and chose to bat first. Along with his opening partner, Sanath Jayasuriya, the MI captain came out to open the innings for the team.

Playing his role efficiently, the Master Blaster delivered an explosive start to the team. With the Sri Lanka legend, he stitched a 127-run partnership that helped the team to be in a dominating position. Leading from the front, he contributed 68 runs to his team off just 45 deliveries, with 10 boundaries (six fours and four maximums).

In the end, KKR were tasked to achieve a colossal target of 188 due to Tendulkar’s fine knock. The massive total powered MI bowlers to wrap up the opponents for 95. For his superb batting show, Tendulkar also received the second Player of the Match of the season.