At 36, Tendulkar hasn't shown signs of ageing, and his sparkling touch in both forms of the game has ruled out all possibilities of him checking out anytime soon. Fatigue, cramps and paucity of time have stood in the way of batsmen going that extra mile to get to the 200-mark. Tendulkar did cramp up after crossing 150, but he didn't opt for a runner. His experience of 20 years at the international level came into play in this historic innings, staying at the crease from the first ball to the last, never once losing focus. There were no chances offered, no dropped catches, making his innings absolutely flawless.

A swirl of emotions must have run through his mind as he approached one record after another but he ensured he was never lost in the moment. His running between the wickets remained just as swift as it had been at the start of the innings. The humidity in Gwalior was bound to test him but he stood above it all and played like he owned the game, toying with the bowling with a mix of nonchalance and brute power.

DoUbLe ToN

It was Tendulkar’s 46th century in one-day cricket for India and continues a remarkable recent run of form for a player who, at the age of 36, is showing no sign of slowing down with hundreds in each of his last four Tests.

The speed of Tendulkar’s innings was breathtaking. He faced just 147 balls hitting 25 fours and three sixes. His strike rate of 136.05 was higher than any of the other innings on the list of top ten scores one-day international scores.

Tendulkar reached his double hundred with a single of Charl Langeveldt in the final over of India’s 401 for three.