The final Test of Sachin Tendulkar began with tributes to the legend – BCCI president N Srinivasan handed him a memento, a painted portrait was presented to him, the West Indies side gave him a framed autographed shirt, the coin at the toss was a specially minted one featuring Sachin Tendulkar, and MS Dhoni gave him a special cap with 200 printed on its brim which he used instead of his usual floppy hat.

on a cool Thursday morning, Mumbai woke up with a feeling of energy, nervous excitement and a tinge of sadness. The ‘son of the soil’ Sachin Tendulkar is playing his 200th and final Test at the Wankhede Stadium versus the West Indies. From 6am this morning, fans queued up outside the Wankhede Stadium to gain entry into the ground. Shouts of “Sachin, Sachin” echoed throughout Mumbai. To cheer Sachin as he walked out with the rest of the Indian team to field were his family members, Bollywood superstar Aamir Khan, Mumbai Cricket Association chief Sharad Pawar, former Indian skipper Saurav Ganguly and cricket greats like Kapil Dev and Clive Lloyd.