Cricket legend Sachin Tendulkar wept as he left the pitch for the final time on Saturday after his 200th Test match, ending a glittering career spanning nearly a quarter of a century.
Sachin TendulkarThe master batsman, who has god-like popularity across India, waved to thousands of cheering fans and wiped tears from his eyes as he left the field through a guard of honour formed by his teammates at Mumbai's Wankhede stadium.
At the age of 40, Tendulkar is retiring from the game as the world's leading scorer in both Test and one-day cricket and the only batsman to score 100 international centuries.
To the disappointment of his ardent followers, the "Little Master" only batted for one innings during the match in his hometown against the West Indies, failing to clinch a fairytale final century when he was out for 74 on Friday.
His dismissal was met by a stunned silence followed by a standing ovation from the stands, where the crowds had cheered his every run with deafening roars, television broadcasts showed.
An Indian youth walks past a huge poster saluting cricketer Sachin Tendulkar on the facade of a shop in Mumbai on November 13, 2013
Spectators nevertheless praised his final performance, which included 12 well-timed boundaries to remind them of the best that Tendulkar has produced since his international debut in 1989.
"His 74 runs captured all we have come to love and celebrate about him," said a piece in the Hindustan Times daily, with the headline: "Thank you, thank you, thank you".
"A billion dreams end," said the Times of India.
The star's wheelchair-bound mother, Rajni, watched her son bat in person for the first time after a special ramp was built for her at the stadium for his final match. She had previously worried her presence may bring her son bad luck.
Tendulkar failed to score a Test century in the last 40 innings of his career, with the final of his 51 Test tons coming nearly three years ago in January 2011 against South Africa.
His declining powers in recent years had led some to suggest he should have retired earlier, but such criticism failed to dent his superstar status among India's 1.2 billion people.
Global cricketing greats Brian Lara and Shane Warne flew in to join Indian politicians, corporate leaders and Bollywood stars at Wankhede for Tendulkar's emotional swansong.
Due to an ongoing dispute between media groups and the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), Agence France-Presse was unable to provide coverage of the match.
At the age of 40, Tendulkar is retiring from the game as the world's leading scorer in both Test and one-day cricket and the only batsman to score 100 international centuries.
To the disappointment of his ardent followers, the "Little Master" only batted for one innings during the match in his hometown against the West Indies, failing to clinch a fairytale final century when he was out for 74 on Friday.
His dismissal was met by a stunned silence followed by a standing ovation from the stands, where the crowds had cheered his every run with deafening roars, television broadcasts showed.
An Indian youth walks past a huge poster saluting cricketer Sachin Tendulkar on the facade of a shop in Mumbai on November 13, 2013
Spectators nevertheless praised his final performance, which included 12 well-timed boundaries to remind them of the best that Tendulkar has produced since his international debut in 1989.
"His 74 runs captured all we have come to love and celebrate about him," said a piece in the Hindustan Times daily, with the headline: "Thank you, thank you, thank you".
"A billion dreams end," said the Times of India.
The star's wheelchair-bound mother, Rajni, watched her son bat in person for the first time after a special ramp was built for her at the stadium for his final match. She had previously worried her presence may bring her son bad luck.
Tendulkar failed to score a Test century in the last 40 innings of his career, with the final of his 51 Test tons coming nearly three years ago in January 2011 against South Africa.
His declining powers in recent years had led some to suggest he should have retired earlier, but such criticism failed to dent his superstar status among India's 1.2 billion people.
Global cricketing greats Brian Lara and Shane Warne flew in to join Indian politicians, corporate leaders and Bollywood stars at Wankhede for Tendulkar's emotional swansong.
Due to an ongoing dispute between media groups and the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), Agence France-Presse was unable to provide coverage of the match.
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