India’s regular opener Navjot Singh Sidhu had a stiff neck, so skipper Mohammad Azharuddin was looking for a replacement ahead of the second ODI against New Zealand at Auckland on March 27, 1994. His first choice wasn’t Sachin Tendulkar.

“In 1994, when I started opening the batting for India, the strategy used by all teams was to save wickets. What I tried to do was slightly out of the box,” Tendulkar had later revealed.

He added: “I thought I could go upfront and take the opposition bowlers on. But I had to beg and plead to please give me a chance. If I fail, I won’t come after you again.”

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His pleading worked and the idea proved to be an unqualified success.

Also read – Pause, rewind, play: Sachin Tendulkar makes an incredible impact in his first innings as opener

“In that first match (against New Zealand at Auckland), I scored 82 off 49 balls, so I didn’t have to ask again if I would get another chance,” Tendulkar had said.

In many ways, it was a move that changed Tendulkar and Indian cricket forever.

Tendulkar in every batting position

Batting position Span Mat Runs HS Ave SR
1st position 1996-2004 47 1625 120 36.11 82.82
2nd position 1994-2012 293 13685 200* 50.31 88.71
3rd position 1992-2007 10 92 31 10.22 48.16
4th position 1990-2007 61 2059 140* 38.84 77.08
5th position 1989-1997 36 797 82* 28.46 81.07
6th position 1990-2007 4 148 57* 49.33 134.54
7th position 1990-1990 1 20 20 20.00 80.00

Tendulkar’s talent was always unquestionable but in his early years, he produced only fleeting glimpses of what most imagined him to be capable of. There was the odd knock here and there but on the whole, the youngster’s ODI career had an underwhelming feel to it.

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But the move to opener changed all that. Before 1994, he averaged 30.84 in 69 ODIs. After 1994, he averaged 48.29 in 344 ODIs. A game-changer if there ever was one.

1994: Before and after

Span Mat Runs HS Ave SR 100s 50s
1989-2012 463 18426 200* 44.83 86.23 49 96
1989-1994 69 1758 84 30.84 74.36 0 13
1994-2012 344 15310 200* 48.29 88.05 49 75

Of course, there were others who looked to attack at the top of the innings. Mark Greatbatch did it with great success in the 1992 World Cup. The aggressive Sanath Jayasuriya and Romesh Kaluwitharana revolutionised the game in their own way but no one did with the calm consistency of Tendulkar. And calm, in this case, doesn’t mean slow.

Tendulkar differed from other aggressive openers because of the manner in which he would construct his innings. His career strike-rate of 88.05 shows how aggressive he was but at the same time, his average of 48.29 shows he had a knack of picking the right balls to attack.

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The manner in which he managed to marry the strike-rate and average shows how special he was.

From March 1994 to 2012, when Tendulkar retired

Player Span Mat Runs HS Ave SR 100s 50s
SR Tendulkar (INDIA) 1994-2012 344 15310 200* 48.29 88.05 45 75
ST Jayasuriya (Asia/SL) 1994-2011 382 12656 189 34.86 92.92 28 66
AC Gilchrist (AUS/ICC) 1998-2008 260 9200 172 36.50 98.02 16 53
SC Ganguly (INDIA) 1996-2007 242 9146 183 41.57 73.59 19 58
CH Gayle (ICC/WI) 2000-2011 210 7839 153* 41.04 84.62 19 42
V Sehwag (Asia/ICC/INDIA) 2001-2012 208 7335 219 36.67 105.11 14 34
Saeed Anwar (PAK) 1994-2003 181 6677 194 40.22 79.56 14 33
GC Smith (Afr/SA) 2002-2012 180 6583 141 39.18 81.72 9 45
G Kirsten (SA) 1994-2003 164 6299 188* 42.27 73.11 12 43
NJ Astle (NZ) 1995-2007 191 6176 145* 34.89 72.72 14 37
Arranged by most runs scored

There were a few who managed to score runs at a higher average than Tendulkar between 1994 and 2012. Hashim Amla (57.12) and Mahela Jayawardene (54.47) had splendid runs at the top of the order.

The table below only looks at openers who were around when Tendulkar was still playing but even if one goes beyond that, few have been able to match the Indian master for his sheer consistency. He was a batsman India could trust at all times.

Best openers between 1994 and 2012 (by avg)

Player Span Mat Runs HS Ave
HM Amla (SA) 2008-2012 54 2856 140 57.12
DPMD Jayawardene (SL) 2008-2012 21 1035 144 54.47
SR Tendulkar (INDIA) 1994-2012 344 15310 200* 48.29
HH Dippenaar (Afr/SA) 1999-2006 43 1752 125* 47.35
SR Watson (AUS) 2006-2012 82 3440 185* 46.48
ML Hayden (AUS) 1994-2008 139 5721 181* 45.76
MJ Guptill (NZ) 2009-2012 39 1455 122* 44.09
TM Dilshan (SL) 2008-2012 86 3513 160* 43.91
ME Waugh (AUS) 1996-2002 136 5421 173 43.36
S Chanderpaul (WI) 1996-2011 77 2949 150 43.36
*Minimum 1000 runs

Just as fast bowlers hunt in pairs, so do openers. Tendulkar was lucky to find two other batsmen with whom he forged formidable opening partnerships.

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With Sourav Ganguly, he put on 6609 runs at an average of 49.32 at the top of the order. The right and left-hand combination made things difficult for bowlers.

With Virender Sehwag, Tendulkar put on 3919 runs at an average of 42.13. While Tendulkar was often the aggressor in his partnership with Ganguly, here it was Sehwag who would take the attack to the opposition.

Most successful ODI opening pairs

Partners Span Inns NO Runs High Ave 100s 50s
SC Ganguly, SR Tendulkar (INDIA) 1996-2007 136 2 6609 258 49.32 21 23
AC Gilchrist, ML Hayden (AUS) 2001-2008 114 3 5372 172 48.39 16 29
CG Greenidge, DL Haynes (WI) 1979-1991 102 4 5150 192* 52.55 15 24
S Dhawan, RG Sharma (INDIA) 2013-2020 107 1 4802 210 45.30 16 14
HM Amla, Q de Kock (SA) 2013-2019 93 3 4198 282* 46.64 11 14
V Sehwag, SR Tendulkar (INDIA) 2002-2012 93 0 3919 182 42.13 12 18
AC Gilchrist, ME Waugh (AUS) 1998-2002 93 0 3853 206 41.43 8 20
DC Boon, GR Marsh (AUS) 1986-1992 88 0 3523 212 40.03 7 25
MS Atapattu, ST Jayasuriya (SL) 1997-2007 79 2 3382 237 43.92 8 19
AJ Finch, DA Warner (AUS) 2014-2020 65 1 3297 258* 51.51 10 14

In terms of runs, it will be difficult for too many batsmen to get close to Tendulkar. Virat Kohli’s incredible run over the last few years means that he might but Rohit Sharma’s form at the top of the order has seen him average more than Tendulkar by a fair margin.

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Sharma, like Tendulkar, spent the early part of his ODI career batting lower down the order but since he moved to the opener’s slot in 2013, he has hardly put a foot wrong.

Best Indian openers (by runs)

Player Span Mat Runs HS Ave SR
SR Tendulkar 1994-2012 344 15310 200* 48.29 88.05
SC Ganguly 1996-2007 242 9146 183 41.57 73.59
V Sehwag 2001-2013 204 7240 219 36.93 104.85
RG Sharma 2011-2020 140 7148 264 58.11 92.26
S Dhawan 2010-2020 135 5688 143 45.14 94.01
K Srikkanth 1981-1992 146 4091 123 29.01 71.74
G Gambhir 2003-2013 94 3367 150 39.61 86.48
SM Gavaskar 1974-1987 83 2651 103* 35.34 61.50
NS Sidhu 1988-1998 63 2418 134* 40.30 68.03
AM Rahane 2011-2017 54 1937 111 36.54 77.23

Tendulkar’s success at the top of the order forced international teams to rethink their strategy and that, one might argue, shows just how huge an impact his elevation to opener had on world cricket.

Before that, the team’s best batsman would always be reserved for the No 3 or No 4 slot but Tendulkar changed all that. The soundness of the strategy lay in giving the best batsmen the chance of batting the most deliveries and if the batsman stayed in the middle, he/she could take advantage of the field restrictions too.

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In essence, it was a simple strategy but someone had to show the way and all those years ago in 1994, Tendulkar did just that.

All statistics courtesy ESPNCricinfo