13 performances that gave Sachin Tendulkar 'The God of Cricket' status (Pre-2000)

Century on Debut in all 3 First-Class Tournaments and List A cricket

Sachin scored centuries in his Ranji Trophy, Irani Trophy as well as Duleep Trophy debuts.

Catapulted to senior selection by his impressive performances at the junior level, Sachin made his debut for Mumbai against Gujarat in the Ranji Trophy. He scored an unbeaten hundred in this game - his first-class match. In fact, he also scored a century in his debut List A (limited overs senior) game in the Deodhar Trophy.

He also scored a hundred for West Zone on his Duleep Trophy debut, a competition in which teams are selected according to geographical zones. In the Irani Trophy, a competition between the Ranji Trophy winning team and the 'Rest of India' team selected by the selectors, he was chosen to play for the latter against Delhi.

He even scored an unbeaten century in this match. For any young Indian cricketer, this is a quite rare distinction, and is as good as winning all the four grand slams for a tennis player in a year. His name was included in India's Test and ODI squad for what turned out to be their last full tour of Pakistan for another 15 years.