With the score reading 14 for 3, in pursuit of England Lions' first innings total of 413, it seemed India was heading towards embarrassment in the three-day tour match. But out walked Sachin Tendulkar to a huge cheer from the crowd, in anticipation of a top-class innings. And, indeed, he delivered!
The master batsman had done it several times, but on Saturday, again, it was up to him to bail India out of trouble. He did not let his fans down. In fact, he gave them more than they had bargained for.
"Paisa Vasool tha Sachin ka batting [Sachin's innings was worth every penny we spent]," said Inderjeet Singh, an Indian residing in London, who had come to watch the match.
Right from his arrival at the crease, Tendulkar dished out an array of shots on both sides of the wicket. The pace duo of Graham Onions and Stuart Broad were in full steam, having polished off the top order, but they suddenly hit a roadblock in the form of the Mumbai batsman.
Tendulkar admitted that the moment he arrived at the crease he found the middle of the bat and he never looked back.
"Initially we lost a couple of wickets and, then, the moment I went in to bat there was another dismissal; so we were three down with more or less nothing on the board. So it was big responsibility. I thought I would play my game, play some shots, counter attack... and I did," he said.
"I was timing the ball quite well. I had a couple of big sessions in Hove, where I practiced indoors. It helped a lot. I took it one ball at a time," Tendulkar added.
His blazing knock of 171, adding 140 runs for the fifth wicket with Yuvraj Singh (59) bailed India out of trouble, as the duo treated the crowd to some delightful stroke-play in the last two sessions.
Tendulkar, 34, seemed more relieved at getting to spend some time in the middle, ahead of the first Test at Lord's, starting Thursday.
"I thought after the break in the first match [tour match against Sussex] it was extremely important for me to spend some time, and I got some quality practice and I am very happy about it.
"Till yesterday I was a bit apprehensive; I wanted to go out in the middle and get some match practice. We had some practice sessions, but I wanted to be out there considering the conditions are different. So I am quite relieved that I managed to play more than 200 balls," the right-hander said.
Tendulkar was in red-hot form in the three-match one-day series against Ireland and he said he just carried on the good form.
"Yes, scoring some runs in Ireland [in the one-dayers] did help. The conditions were adverse and the wickets were helpful. The South African attack is also quite good, and in that I managed to score some runs. It did help; it gave me a lot of confidence," he said.
The 34-year-old was in vintage form, hitting 23 boundaries and a six in his 236-ball knock.
"I was not out to make any statement. I wanted to get some practice, and while doing that I shifted gears. Immediately, from the start, I started striking the ball well, so I thought I might as well stay in top gear and keep playing the shots," he said.
He also added that Steve Harmison's absence for the first Test would not make a difference to the Indian team.
"There is no doubt that he is a world-class bowler, but that doesn't mean we can't score runs against him. He is a good bowler but we are also out there to score runs. So it would have been a good contest," Tendulkar said.
The Indian top order is a major worry at the moment with Wasim Jaffer's failure to get going in the three innings he has played in the two tour games. But Tendulkar said the team management is fully backing the opener and confident that he will come good in the Tests.
"It hasn't been great but we have got players who have got runs all around the world. It is a matter of spending time at the wicket and runs will come," he said.
As the crowd left the County Stadium in Chelmsford on Saturday evening, they were thankful to the 'little master' for the superb show they were treated to. Now, all they wish for is another century from him in the first Test at Lord's, a feat he hasn't accomplished at the hallowed ground.
After all, even the honours board, which lists the centurions, at Lord's is dying to get the name of one of the greatest batsmen of the modern era inscribed on it. With this possibly being Tendulkar's last Test series in England, it seems he is not going to let the opportunity slip.
