Tendulkar beside his four-year-old self: 49 years of a bond with the bat

Some photographs lay out the long journey of time in front of your eyes. The same person, the same smile, a bat in hand — only 49 years have passed in between. India's legendary batter Sachin Tendulkar posted just such a photo collage on the social media platform X on Sunday (15 November).

On the left of the image is a small boy: curly hair, a mischievous smile, a cricket bat in his hands — the photograph is black and white. In the picture on the right is the same man; age shows in his hair, a mature smile on his face, wearing a blue shirt and jeans, the same cricket bat in hand, and the stance is almost identical.

Alongside the picture, Tendulkar wrote a line in Hindi whose meaning is: 'Related to the bat from the very beginning. Even after 49 years, it is still with me!'

Tendulkar was born in Mumbai on 24 April 1973. The photograph taken at the age of four holds the memory of his earliest days with a bat, and the photograph 49 years later is the continuation of that same bond.

Tendulkar played international cricket for India for 24 years. In that time he scored 100 international centuries, won the World Cup, and became one of the most discussed and respected players in cricket history.

For hundreds of millions of people in India, Tendulkar was another name for emotion. His centuries sparked celebration and his dismissals brought gloom; countless people sat in front of televisions waiting to watch him bat.

There is also a likely occasion for suddenly posting the photograph from the age of four today: it was on this day in 1989 that Tendulkar first walked onto the field for India, bat in hand.

The bond with the bat in Tendulkar's life was therefore never merely professional; this photograph after 49 years stands as a document of that love.