100 hundreds: the story behind Sachin Tendulkar’s greatest record

On 16 March 2012, at the Shere Bangla Stadium in Mirpur, Sachin Tendulkar nudged a single off Bangladesh’s Shakib Al Hasan and raised his bat to the sky. It was his 100th international century — a landmark no batter had reached before, and none has reached since.

This is the story of that record.

The first hundred: Manchester, 1990

Tendulkar’s first international century came in only his ninth Test. At Old Trafford in August 1990, aged 17, he made an unbeaten 119 to save the match against England. It made him one of the youngest Test centurions in history.

Perth, 1992

At 18 he made 114 on the bounce of the WACA in Perth against a strong Australian attack. Many observers still call it one of the finest innings by a teenager.

The first ODI hundred, 1994

Surprisingly, his first ODI century did not arrive until his 79th match, against Australia in Colombo in September 1994. The change came after he was promoted to open the batting in New Zealand earlier that year. From then on he became the most prolific one-day batter in the world.

Desert Storm, 1998

In April 1998, in Sharjah, he made back-to-back hundreds against Australia — 143 in a sandstorm-interrupted game to take India to the final, then 134 in the final itself. The innings became known as “Desert Storm” and confirmed him as the world’s best batter.

Chennai, 1999 and 2008

He made 136 against Pakistan in Chennai in 1999 while suffering back spasms; India lost narrowly. In December 2008, weeks after the Mumbai terror attacks, he made an unbeaten 103 to win a Test against England in Chennai and dedicated it to the people of Mumbai.

The first ODI double century, 2010

On 24 February 2010 in Gwalior, Tendulkar became the first man to score 200 in a men’s one-day international, against South Africa. It opened the way for others, but he was the first.

World Cup 2011

He made two centuries in the 2011 World Cup and was India’s top scorer as the team won the trophy at home — the title he had chased for 22 years.

The long wait for No 100

After his 99th hundred, against South Africa in Nagpur in March 2011, the 100th took a full year. The pressure was enormous, with each innings followed by headlines. It finally arrived in Mirpur in the Asia Cup in March 2012.

The numbers

• 51 Test centuries and 49 ODI centuries.
• 15,921 Test runs and 18,426 ODI runs, both records.
• 200 Test matches, the most by any player.

Records that have fallen

Virat Kohli passed Tendulkar’s 49 ODI centuries during the 2023 World Cup semi-final, with Tendulkar in the stands. In September 2026, Joe Root passed his record of 68 Test fifties. These achievements show how strong modern batters are — yet the overall record of 100 hundreds remains untouched.

Why it may last

Players today face a crowded calendar across three formats, and few play Tests and ODIs for 24 years as Tendulkar did. Kohli, the closest active player, is past 85 international hundreds but now plays only ODIs. Reaching 100 would require extraordinary longevity.

That is why many fans believe Tendulkar’s 100 international centuries will stand as cricket’s equivalent of Don Bradman’s Test average of 99.94 — a number that defines greatness.