India began their second innings in Centurion with a deficit for 484 and were reduced to 277 for 6. Tendulkar rallied, along with Dhoni, and his century changed India's prospects of saving the game from impossible to improbable

A 214 in Bangalore helped secure India's 2-0 win against Australia in 2010. "On his last tour of Australia, Tendulkar was given rapturous ovations by an adoring public each time he went in or out. But the Australians might not have seen the last of him," wrote Sambit Bal. "Fifty Test hundreds are but a formality. A hundred international hundreds are there for the taking. Tendulkar, though, endures not in the pursuit of milestones, but because he can't fall out of love with cricket."

Sri Lanka declared on 642 for 4 at the SSC and India slipped from 165 for 0 to 241 for 4. Tendulkar scored his 48th century and converted it into a double, giving India the lead. "Yesterday when I got into the dressing room, I had a long ice bath. I was in the ice tub for a while. Then I did some stretches, had an early dinner, and I was in bed by 8.30," he said. "For almost all four days, I have been on the field. It's been demanding on the body, but it's held up pretty well."

The 106 in Kolkata helped India level the series against South Africa and stay No. 1 in Tests. "Watching him bat can be a demoralising experience for those on the other side. He knows his game so well, and seldom does anything more than is required," Cricinfo reported. "With Tendulkar these days, as opposed to the man who eviscerated Shane Warne in Chennai and Bangalore in 1998, patience is a weapon used to wear down bowlers."

A second-innings 100 from Tendulkar couldn't prevent South Africa from steam-rolling India by an innings and six runs in Nagpur in February 2010

The 143 against Bangladesh in Mirpur in the next Test was a relatively quick one. It took 182 balls and led to India's ten-wicket win. ©Associated Press

Sehwag called Bangladesh an ordinary side before the Chittagong Test in 2009 and Tendulkar's unbeaten 105 was needed to prop India up to 243 in the first innings, in a match they eventually won. ©AFP

An unbeaten 100 on a flat pitch at Motera in 2009 helped India draw the Test against Sri Lanka, after the visitors had amassed 760 in their first innings. It ensured Sri Lanka stayed without a Test win in India.

A 160 in Hamilton in 2009 was the bedrock of a victory that led to India's series win. "When will Tendulkar retire? Answer: when it suits him. But he'll certainly be around until the 2011 World Cup," wrote David Leggat in the New Zealand Herald. "That gives him two years at least. Eight more centuries give him 50. He's got 43 in ODIs. A double of 50 in each form of the game has a nice ring to it. It is certainly within his capabilities."

Tendulkar's match-winning 103 in a run-chase against England in Chennai, less than a month after Mumbai was attacked in 2008. "He's 35 years old and owns practically every batting record in the game, but you couldn't escape the feeling that this was probably Sachin Tendulkar's finest hour," wrote Dileep Premachandran. "To score the winning runs in a record-shattering chase was special enough, but when that last stroke also brought up your 41st century, it became ineffably so."

A 109 in Sourav Ganguly's final Test helped India win the series against Australia 2-0 in Nagpur in 2008. "I know I am batting well, but I was not getting to the three-figure landmark. But I don't think that is everything," Tendulkar said. "I have gone in at crucial [stages] at almost four or five times and I have been able to play. That is very satisfying, when you deliver when the team needs the most."

: A 153 at the Adelaide Oval, his first at Don Bradman's home ground, in 2007-08. "Unless his nerve fails him or batting becomes a chore, Tendulkar will be back in 2012," wrote Peter Roebuck in the Sydney Morning Herald. "Far from losing focus, he looks eager. Rejecting the captaincy helped him to renew his vitality. After a struggle, he has come to terms with age; has learnt to combine the singles of experience with the boundaries of youth."

An unbeaten 154 at the SCG in 2008, aka Monkeygate. "Commit all your crimes when Sachin is batting," one banner read. "They will go unnoticed because even the Lord is watching." Another said: "Sachin Cricket Ground." Tendulkar called the SCG "one of my favourite grounds . Sometimes you walk on the field and it gives you good feelings. It is one of those grounds."

The unbeaten 122 in the next Test in Dhaka wasn't pretty. "Tendulkar couldn't improvise and play a scoring shot when deceived by the slowness of the wicket," Sidharth Monga wrote for Cricinfo. "Not long ago, you'd describe him as a batsman who had two shots for every ball; here he was struggling to do anything more than nudge it to leg. It was all the more painful to see him make the conditions and bowling look more difficult than they probably were."

The 101 in Chittagong in 2007 came 17 months, 10 Tests and 17 innings after No. 35, the longest gap Tendulkar endured between centuries. "After 17 years, I don't think I have a point to prove," Tendulkar said. "I would dedicate this to my father as it was his eighth death anniversary yesterday. So, this one was pretty emotional."

The 109 against Sri Lanka at the Kotla in 2005 gave Tendulkar the world record. "His 35th hundred was not his prettiest. A large part of it was a struggle," wrote Sambit Bal. "But it will remain a memorable one. And who knows, it could even be a liberating one. How his career shapes from here might depend on how much freedom he grants himself."

The 194 in Multan in 2004 was controversial. Tendulkar, who was batting slowly, was denied a shot at a double-century when Rahul Dravid declared as India pushed for victory. "Even the greatest have their goals, dreams and milestones, and a double-century against Pakistan in Pakistan would have been a memory to treasure," John Wright, India's coach, wrote in his book. "After a sleepless night, I spoke to Tendulkar who confirmed that he'd wanted the team to cut him some slack. Then he and Dravid talked it through and resolved the matter."

Tendulkar ended a two-year fallow period with an unbeaten 241 at the SCG in 2004, an innings in which he cut out shots between mid-off and point because he was falling to them. "I would put this innings right at the top of my hundreds," he said. "I am happy that I was able to maintain the discipline throughout the innings. Things had gone wrong a couple of times with my shot selection, and I knew I had to cut out a few strokes."

India were 11 for 2, needing to erase a 139-run deficit against West Indies, when Tendulkar rallied with 176 to save the game in Kolkata, 2002. "It has been said innumerable times in the past, most loudly by his critics, that Tendulkar fails to make runs when India need it the most," wrote Anand Vasu for Cricinfo. "Today ... not being altogether destructive, or indeed too defensive, Tendulkar remained unbeaten on 114 as the players walked off the field."

Tendulkar scored 193 in his 99th Test, at Headlingley in 2002, contributing significantly to India's innings-and-46-run victory. "The beauty of Tendulkar is the ability to make shots that the merely very good players cannot - and the wiser 29-year-old model even does it without risk," wrote Rahul Bhattacharya in the Guardian. "His wrists are a curious mix of clay and steel: able to take any shape, then, trading suppleness for force for the briefest moment that bat meets ball. Yesterday he swirled his way about on the onside as if it was his very own version of leg theory.