Pause, rewind, play: When Tendulkar dominated Donald and Co with a majestic 169 in Cape Town

In the 1996-’97 tour, India were 33/4 after South Africa opted to bat first and declared after posting an imposing total of 529/7. The hosts had won the first Test in Durban by 328 runs and now in Cape Town, they were setting themselves up nicely for a series-clinching victory.

Sachin Tendulkar, captaining the Indian team, had only just come to the crease, batting at No 5 after Venkatesh Prasad. He witnessed the fall of the fourth wicket, that of Sourav Ganguly, just as he was trying to familiarise himself with the conditions out in the middle.

But that didn’t stop Tendulkar from playing two confident front foot drives first up. Shaun Pollock was in the middle of a fine spell and he pitched one on a good length, Tendulkar took a short stride forward and played a classic straight drive for two. Next, Pollock pitched it on a similar length but slightly wide and Tendulkar drove it through cover for two more.

Those two shots marked the beginning of what is remembered as one of Tendulkar’s finest Test knocks. His team was in dire straits. Yet again, the responsibility had fallen on his shoulders. And yet again, he delivered.

Tendulkar had shown impressive form leading up to…

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