Sachin Tendulkar announced his retirement from One-day Internationals today, and with it comes to an end one of the memorable eras in world cricket.

The genius batsman from Mumbai ends his career with 49 hundreds, 18,426 runs, 463 appearances, and 96 half-centuries — all world records earned over a massive 23-year-long career — but he will value his 2011 World Cup win above all these.

Tendulkar, who will turn 40 in April, exited the 50-over-format quietly. The Board of Cricket Control in India’s website announced that Tendulkar had conveyed his decision to president N. Srinivasan.

“I have decided to retire from the One Day format of the game,” his statement published on BCCI.tv said.

“I feel blessed to have fulfilled the dream of being part of a World Cup wining Indian team. The preparatory process to defend the World Cup in 2015 should begin early and in right earnest. I would like to wish the team all the very best for the future. I am eternally grateful to all my well wishers for their unconditional support and love over the years.”

The Press Trust of India quoted a source as saying that Tendulkar had gone off the radar after the Nagpur Test, where India surrendered the Test series to England.

'Once he was back in Mumbai after the Nagpur Test, he switched off his cell phone and became incommunicado for at least three days. The only possible way to contact him w.