India’s batting legend Sachin Tendulkar, South Africa’s retired pace ace Allan Donald and former Australia woman fast bowler Cathryn Fatzprick were on Thursday inducted into the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame at a ceremony in London.
Tendulkar, the most prolific batsman in history, was inducted immediately after becoming eligible for induction, which requires that a player should have played his last international match at least five years before.
Tendulkar, who retired in November 2013, scored 15,921 runs in Tests and 18,426 in ODIs, both of which remain records. He is the sixth Indian to be inducted into the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame.
Donald, known as the ‘White Lightening’, was arguably South Africa’s fastest bowler ever and finished with 330 Test and 272 ODI wickets.
He is one of the players credited with South Africa’s success in the game after their return to international cricket in 1991.
Fitzpatrick, the eighth woman to win the award, was the fastest bowler in women’s cricket for 16 years, ending her career with 180 wickets in 109 matches, a record then. She helped Australia win two ICC Women’s Cricket World Cups and finished with 60 wickets in 13 Tests.
In his reaction, Tendulkar said: “It is an honour to be inducted into the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame, which cherishes the contribution of cricketers over generations. They have all contributed to the growth and popularity of the game and I am happy to have done my bit.
“On this occasion, I would like to thank all of those who were by my side over a long international career. My parents, brother Ajit and wife Anjali have been pillars of strength while I was lucky to have someone like coach Ramakant Achrekar as an early guide and mentor,” he said.
Donald said, “The biggest shock when you open an e-mail like that - it says congratulations Allan Donald, you have been inducted in the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame!
It hits you, it hits you quite hard because it is a prestigious award and something that you can’t take lightly. I thank the ICC for the huge honour.”
