Sports Desk:

Former and current India players took to their social media to extend birthday wishes to batting legend Sachin Tendulkar, who turned 49 on Sunday.

“A true legend & an even better human being. Wish you a very happy birthday @sachin_rt God bless.” tweeted former Indian opener Gautam Gambhir.

Secretary of Board of Control for Cricket in India Jay Shah also took to Twitter to wish Tendulkar saying the passion shown by Master Blaster inspired many and united billions for the game.

“To the man who united billions worldwide for the love of cricket, whose magic on the field and generosity off the field inspire many. Happy birthday @sachin_rt! Wishing you the best,” tweeted Jay Shah.

Tendulkar’s former IPL franchise Mumbai Indians also extended birthday wishes on Twitter and tweeted, “The pride of a nation & an emotion to billions. Paltan, replies mdhye Sachiiiin Sachiiiin houu dyaa! Happy birthday, @sachin_rt.”

The Board of Control for Cricket also extended birthday wishes to the Master Blaster, saying: “Here’s wishing the ever-so-inspirational & legendary @sachin_rt a very happy birthday.”

Taking to Twitter, former India Test vice-captain Ajinkya Rahane wrote: “Happy Birthday @sachin_rt! May you always be blessed with great health and happiness.”

The Maharashtra-born player, who turned 49 on Sunday, made his Test debut on November 15, 1989, at the age of 16. In the same year on December 18, he played his first ODI match.

The legendary batter has the most number of runs in the longest format of the game, amassing 15,921 runs. Along the way, Tendulkar scored 51 Test centuries, the most by any player.

Apart from Test cricket, Sachin has created numerous records in the ODI format as well. He stands at the top of the list of most runs in ODI, with a total of 18,426 runs, including 49 tons and 96 half-centuries.

During his long career, the former batter represented India in six World Cups. He was also a part of the 2011 World Cup-winning squad.

He has also achieved a historic milestone of scoring 100 international tons and holds the record for registering the most centuries in Test and ODIs. He was also the first batsman to score a double ton in the 50-over format.

Sachin was last seen playing in Road Safety World Series in 2021, where he led India Legends to the title win. Currently, he is the mentor of the Indian Premier League franchise, Mumbai Indians.