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OTD in 2008: Sachin Tendulkar became the Test King by breaking Brian Lara's record

Soumyajit Dutta

Sachin Tendulkar breaks massive record of Brian Lara [Source: @PBTheBanglaBoy/X.com]Sachin Tendulkar breaks massive record of Brian Lara [Source: @PBTheBanglaBoy/X.com]

It was 17 years ago when Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar, the God of Cricket, etched his legacy on the cricket field with his monumental records in Test cricket. On this day, at exactly 2:31 PM IST in Mohali in 2008, Sachin became the leading run-scorer in Test cricket by overtaking West Indies great Brian Lara's record.

Lara had recorded a massive 11,953 runs from 131 Test matches at an average of 52.88, which seemed unscalable until Sachin breached it. Tendulkar crossed the 12,000-run mark and went on to amass 15,921 runs from 200 matches, a record that still stands at the peak of most Test runs in international cricket. 

England's Joe Root, who has played 158 Test matches to date, stands second to Tendulkar but with a massive difference of 2,378 runs.

The Mohali saga that witnessed Tendulkar's greatness

In the second Test in Mohali, the crowd erupted as the Master Blaster surpassed the historic record to become the leading run-scorer in Tests. Tendulkar reached the glory from 152 Tests and 247 innings at an average of 54.03, which Lara had achieved from 131 Tests.

After Tendulkar reached the milestone with the bat, Australia's Ricky Ponting and Peter Siddle congratulated him, and celebrations filled the stadium as if India had already won the match.

There were happy smiling faces all across the stadium after Sachin Tendulkar reached the milestone, and play had to be stopped for a few minutes due to the over-energetic crowd, celebrations, and Australian players greeting Tendulkar.

Tendulkar still reigns supreme

Later, Tendulkar scored 88 runs from 111 balls in that innings while pairing with Sourav Ganguly before being dismissed by Siddle. It has been almost two decades since Tendulkar surpassed that record, yet his greatness remains untouchable. 

The legend retired in 2013 after playing two Tests against West Indies, and ever since he rested his bat from Test cricket, he has continued to reign supreme at the top.