Sachin Tendulkar, born on 24 April 1973, is a former Indian international cricketer who captained the national team and is widely regarded as one of the greatest cricketers in the game’s history. He took up cricket at 11, made his Test debut at 16 against Pakistan in Karachi in 1989, and played for Mumbai and India for more than 24 years.
He is the highest run-scorer in international cricket and the only batsman to score 100 international centuries, and he was part of the team that won the 2011 World Cup. He retired from all cricket in November 2013 after his 200th Test, and after that last match the Prime Minister’s Office announced he would receive the Bharat Ratna, India’s highest civilian award. He was the first sportsperson to receive it.