Sachin Tendulkar 1990 — Sachin Tendulkar celebrates hitting 119 runs not out against England at Old Trafford in 1990. Photograph: Ben Radford/Getty Images

From the Vault: Sachin Tendulkar's first century in Test cricket in 1990

This article is more than 10 years old

When Tendulkar hit his maiden Test century at Old Trafford in August 1990, he became the youngest player to score a ton in England. Here is Mike Selvey's report from that summer's day

Tendulkar's little gem keeps series alive
by Mike Selvey at Old Trafford

The kids these days! When Sachin Tendulkar was born, 17 years and 112 days ago yesterday, Eddie Hemmings was in his eighth first-class season. By the time he was two, Graham Gooch had made his Test debut.

Now, to a match, indeed a series where the jewels have overflowed as if from a maharajah's treasure chest, this young man has added another diamond of the highest quality, a Test hundred. He is the youngest player to achieve one in England and the second youngest, behind Mushtaq Mohammad, to score one anywhere.

It was an innings of rare quality, scored in adversity, against an England side rampaging to what would have been a third consecutive Test win. England did not get close.

India had been set 408 to win by Gooch, an impossible target, and shortly after lunch had collapsed to 109 for four when Tendulkar came to the crease. At a quarter past six, with two overs of the game remaining, Gooch called off his quest for victory and Tendulkar was able to pluck off his helmet and walk from the field.

He had 119 runs to his name and together with Manoj Prabhakar, 67 not out, had added 160 in an unbroken seventh-wicket stand. They had seen India to 343 for six, to safety and a chance of squaring the series. Mushtaq was a mere 30 days younger when, 29 years ago, he made 101 for Pakistan in Delhi.

For all the sturdy runs from Gooch and Atherton, Smith and Lamb, and Azharuddin's memorable effort, David LLoyd was in no doubt that Tendulkar should be the first ever Boy of the Match winner.

In a week when a 19-year-old has purchased a football club it does not do to patronise youth, but imagine if Tendulkar were English. He would not yet be able to vote or buy his round in the pub he would barely be allowed to drive.

As a cricketer of promise he would probably be playing this week in the Under-19 counties festival at Oxford or Cambridge. Instead he has just completed his ninth Test match.

He was brought up in a comfortable environment in Bombay and made a triple century while at school, sharing in the process a partnership of 664. At 15 he scored a first-class century. A year later he was the youngest ever player to represent his country.

From the light gold chain round his neck to the way his sleeves are rolled just so above his wrists, it is clear that his has been a privileged upbringing. Only his grubby pads look incongruous, but then they have seen a bit of service.

Once they were strapped to the legs of Sunil Gavaskar, also from Bombay and scorer of 34 Test hundreds when he retired he gave the pads to Tendulkar.

Fittingly, when Tendulkar punched Angus Fraser through mid-off for the runs that took him to his hundred, Gavaskar stood on the team balcony to applaud. He had run from the television commentary box to be there, and every record he ever made is now at Tendulkar's mercy.

Tendulkar clearly has the most remarkable temperament. In the first innings, when Azharuddin was in full flow, he took almost an hour to score his first run and went on to make 68. That helped to save the follow-on. Now he had to save the game, and although inside there might have been turmoil, particularly in the 90s, on the surface he was almost serene.

He benefited from Gooch's attacking field placements which meant that four runs often resulted from shots through the infield. And his lack of height, at 5ft 5in, creates its own chances for, like Gavaskar, he has to be a supreme judge of length he forces the bowlers to change their length and then cashes in. Seventeen boundaries, many of them forced square on the off side, were the result.

There was some help from England, who can really only blame themselves for not wrapping up the game despite the dreadfully slow pitch. Two crucial catches went to ground: Tendulkar on 10 hit a simple return to Hemmings, and Gooch missed a chance offered by Prabhakar to second slip when 30.

But the day had begun well. Five overs in the morning saw Smith to a half- century and the total to 320, at which point the bowlers got to work.
Sidhu was unlucky to be given out first ball, caught bat-pad off Fraser umpiring in this game has not been of the highest standard. Then Shastri dragged a wide ball from Malcolm on to his off stump and, after a recovery, Manjrekar, Vengsarkar and Azharuddin went in quick succession, two of them to Hemmings during a long spell when he extracted some turn from the worn pitch.

When Kapil Dev, incredibly, lost his marbles and his off stump trying to hit Hemmings into central Manchester, the game looked past saving. Instead his was the last wicket to fall. What a pity only 1,778 spectators witnessed a remarkable day.

"My ambition is just to play for my country as long as possible and to do my best," said Tendulkar afterwards. England's captain Gooch said: "Tendulkar played an excellent innings. He is a superb player for his age, just like an old pro."