Azhar, and the Sachin of Sharjah

Exactly this time, 22 years back, Sachin Tendulkar had held the cricket world in his thrall twice in the space of three nights. At the Sharjah Cricket Stadium, where India and success weren't always synonymous, a one-man army laid mighty Australia low. On a sand-swept Wednesday night, Tendulkar produced an epic as India won the war even though they lost the battle. Two nights later, on April 24, 1998 - also his 25th birthday - Tendulkar conjured another magical century to shatter the belief that lightning never strikes the same place twice.

If his frenzied 143 in the final league clash of the three-nation Coca-Cola Cup helped seal qualification to the final despite a 26-run defeat, then his magnificent 134 two nights on ended a three-year wait for silverware at the most prolific One-Day International venue globally. For those who witnessed Whirlwind Wednesday and Fabulous Friday, cricket has never been the same since.

Like most things Indian cricket, there was a backstory to these heroics. Or, more accurately, a series of backstories that culminated in Mohammad Azharuddin's return to the helm of the team and Tendulkar's return to the helm of the batting order.

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Azhar had enjoyed a largely unchallenged run as Indian captain since his surprise, left-field appointment in the lead-up to the tour of New Zealand in early 1990. Despite a creditable 0-0 draw in a four-Test series in Pakistan, where Tendulkar cut his teeth in international cricket, towards the end of 1989, Krishnamachari Srikkanth's ordinary batting form cost him not just the captaincy but also a place in the playing eleven.

Azhar's early captaincy days were turbulent - sticking England in at Lord's and watching Graham Gooch unleash 333, anyone? - and moves were afoot to replace him in the immediacy of the inaugural Test tour of South Africa in 1992-93. Put on probation at the start of the home series against England in January 1993, Azhar responded with an extraordinary 197-ball 182 in the