Group Captain Sachin Tendulkar

Cricketer Sachin Tendulkar was conferred with the rank of honorary Group Captain of the IAF.

Before being felicitated with the honorary rank, Sachin Tendulkar had gone through a process of familiarisation with the IAF and training in basic military practices and drills.




Till date, 21 eminent personalities have been granted honorary ranks by the IAF, the first being the Raja of Jawhar Yashwant Rao, who was conferred the Flight Lieutenant's rank in 1944.



Industrialist J R D Tata was made an honorary Air Vice Marshal in 1974 and the last one to get such an honour in 1990 was industrialist-cum-aviator Vijaypat Singhania, who is now an honorary Air Commodore.

In a career spanning more than two decades, Tendulkar has crossed many milestones and holds almost every batting record.

He is the most-capped Test cricketer in the world with 169 matches to his name.

Tendulkar has played 442 one-day internationals, just a couple of matches less than Sri Lankan Sanath Jayasuriya's record of 444.
The veteran right-hander has scored 13,742 runs in 168 Tests at an average of 56.08, notching up 48 hundreds and 55 half-centuries in the process.

He has 17,598 runs, including 46 centuries, in his 442 one-dayers. The Mumbaikar also holds the distinction of being the first batsman to score a double hundred in ODIs.