MUMBAI: Just like his famous father, cricket icon Sachin Tendulkar, Arjun Tendulkar has slammed a hundred on his First-Class debut.
Playing for Goa, the 23-year-old slammed a ton -113 off 195 balls with 15 fours and two sixes (at the time of writing this)-against Rajasthan on Day 2 of their Ranji Trophy match at the Goa Cricket Association Academy Ground in Porvorim. Boosted by tons by Tendulkar and Suyash Prabhudessai (172 not out, 357b, 25x4) and their unbeaten 212-run partnership in 362 balls for the sixth wicket, Goa marched to 413 for 5.
Almost exactly 34 years back, on 11 December 1988, Sachin Tendulkar, aged 15 years and 232 days, became the youngest Indian to score a century on debut in first-class cricket when he scored 100 not out for Bombay against Gujarat at the Wankhede stadium. Arjun had switched to Goa as a ‘professional’ this season due to lack of game time with Mumbai. The left-arm pacer played 2 T20s (against Haryana and Puducherry) in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy in January last season.
Arjun was included in the Mumbai team’s Ranji Trophy squad for the group stage of the tournament last season, but didn’t get to play a game. He was then excluded from the side’s knockouts squad.
Arjun has been part of the Mumbai Indians set up for the last two IPLs, but is yet to make his debut for them. Before the season, he was a part of MI' developmental squad, which played T20 games in England against English club sides.
