February 3, 1992

The WACA wicket was lightning quick. Craig McDermott, Merv Hughes, Paul Reiffel and Mike Whitney together made up one of the most potent bowling attacks, tailor-made for that surface. Allan Border and his men scented blood.

The 18-year-old Sachin Tendulkar had been pushed up to No 4 for the first time in the previous Test, mainly because the senior men had been found wanting ... most woefully so. Here too he walked in after the fall of the second wicket. And as was to happen so often through his career, he found wickets falling all around him. Stumps had been drawn on the second day with the little guy on 31, India gasping at 136 for 5 in response to 346.

On the morrow, it soon became 159 for 8. But all the while, Tendulkar was playing as if in a different game.

With Kiran More digging in, he pierced the field with splendid drives and spectacular cuts, plundering runs front, square and fine with equal elan.

A straight driven four off McDermott got him his century, one of the best of his 51 Test hundreds. The young master scored 114 that day.

Australia won the Test, and thus the series 4-0. But India had discovered the man who would steer their destiny for the next two decades.

Text: Arunabha Sengupta
Illustration: Maha