In 1998, on April 22, India met Australia in a must-win game and that too with caveats attached in order to pip New Zealand into the finals of the Coca Cola Trophy in Sharjah.
Australia had batted first and made 284/7 in 50 overs as Michael Bevan made 101* and Mark Waugh made 81. India didn't have a very good start as Damien Fleming got Sourav Ganguly out for 17. Nayan Mongia was promoted to no.3 and he added 69 runs with Sachin, getting out for 35.
India kept losing wickets at the other end as Azhar fell for 14, Jadeja for 1. Sachin finally found some support in VVS Laxman and knowing that it was upto him to get India into the finals, the master took on the Australian bowling lineup single-handedly. A sandstorm halted play in middle of Indian innings and revised the target at 276 in 46 overs.
Tendulkar managed 143, his then highest ODI score with 5 sixes and 9 fours to his name and came in just 131 balls. India finished their quota of 46 overs at 250/6, losing the match by 26 runs. But they had bettered their net-run rate enough to put New Zealand out of the finals.
The Little Master looked fearless and flawless with his batting and the spectators couldn’t have asked for a better game. Tendulkar said recollecting the memories: “Australia was No.1 at that stage and to beat them so convincingly was extremely satisfying. Those days we used to play in Sharjah and drive all the way back to Dubai. And the next day was for recovery and the following day was the final. It was not so easy.”
India captain Mohammad Azharuddin said, “At one point when the storm came in, our first thoughts were how long would it last! That was because the more time got wasted, the tougher the calculations were becoming. In the end, Sachin was brilliant.”
Watch Sachin Tendulkar’s brutal desert storm innings here:
