SK Elite: Sachin Tendulkar's masterclass against Australia at Hyderabad

There’s always that one shot which completely defines a monumental knock.

During the gum-chewing Viv Richards’ record-breaking 189 against England, one gem stood out from the rest: he nonchalantly flicked one of Ian Botham’s menacing inswinging deliveries over deep square leg for a huge six. The bewilderment was writ large on Botham’s face. It was just one of those days.

A quarter of a century later, against world champions Australia at Hyderabad in 2009, Sachin Tendulkar executed a flawless cover-drive that should be framed forever: the bat made a crescent arc, his 62-kg-frame shifted balance mechanically from right foot to the left, and the ball struck the meatiest spot possible on the blade.

The stroke was so pure that it felt surreal. If the magical knock is made into a feature film, that shot would be the perfect teaser.

The late 2000s witnessed Tendulkar experience a second wind in his quarter of a century long international career, an injection that brought to life Sachin 2.0: a perfect amalgamation of aggression from the 1990s and assurance from the 2000s.

The 175 runs against Australia, arguably his best in ODIs while chasing, were special because of the way he approached the tall target (351) - there seemed to be no pressure on the 36-year-old to slow down at all as he went about penetrating gaps and impaling bowlers.

Sachin celebrates his milestone

Each of his scoring strokes had ‘authoritative assurance’, a trait that meant that he could jump down the track like a teenager, but still have time to manoeuvre the ball exactly in the spot he wanted, picking up lengths as if their values were programmed into his brain.

That night, he seemed to have a mental note of each bowler in his mind: Clint McKay, Ben Hilfenhaus and Doug Bollinger, who formed a three-pronged pace attack, were literally toyed with, while spinners Nathan Hauritz and Adam Voges were brushed aside like a bullying older brother shuts up his irritating siblings.

When Tendulkar was in his zone, he had the ability to pre-empt his strokes. Andrew Caddick would still be having nightmares of that Durban six. Hilfenhaus got a taste of the same when Sachin calmly walked across and whipped one of his deliveries over midwicket, predicting the length before the ball had even left his hand.

The bowler let out a frustrated shriek as soon as the ball struck the willow. That was just a start; Sachin would go on to make 146 more, and Hilfenhaus would be seen carrying the same blank face all evening. He knew it was one of those days.

When the pacers saw their deliveries being sent back at double the speed at which they were hurled, they resorted to all sorts of slow balls: split finger, back of the hand, whatnot. The gentle pace of Mike Hussey was also tried with the hope of squeezing out a false stroke. Tendulkar was unflustered, using his feet often and generating tremendous shot power, just like he did in his pomp.

He could have tamed the bowlers, but how could he have controlled his own fate?

Jinxed run-chases turned out to be worryingly frequent as his career progressed: Tendulkar, hundreds and heartbreaks became three sides of a fidget spinner; if you flicked one, the other two would follow.

It was a hurried paddle-sweep that ended the innings, perhaps the only time he had become flustered by the target, his unyielding teammates doing little to get a move on. It felt like the 90s were back to haunt Tendulkar, his solo performance was not enough to lift the entire team. Only three other Indian batsmen managed double digits that day.

The stroke that stopped hearts

“I would have gladly traded those 175 runs for an India win,” Sachin said.

It was the then fastest ODI hundred by an Indian against Australia, a 36-year-old’s glorious lone effort, wrapped up in a muddled chase.

Sadly, it was one of those days as well.