On March 16, 2012, in Mirpur, Bangladesh, Sachin Tendulkar reached a number that no cricketer had reached before and that may never be reached again: his 100th international century, a milestone that seemed almost preposterously impossible until the moment it became real.

The century — scored against Bangladesh in an Asia Cup match — came after a period of unusual pressure. Tendulkar had been stuck on 99 international hundreds for an agonizing stretch of months, approaching the milestone and then falling short repeatedly, the accumulated weight of expectation visibly affecting the man who had spent his entire career appearing to carry India's sporting hopes with easy grace.

When the milestone finally arrived — a single to mid-wicket to complete the hundred — the reaction was characteristic: Tendulkar raised his bat, looked skyward, and absorbed the recognition of the crowd with the quiet gravity that had always distinguished him from players who made spectacle of their achievements.

The number itself requires context to appreciate. Tendulkar scored his 100th century across 24 years of international cricket, spanning formats and generations, against every significant opponent, on every significant ground. The closest any other player has come is around 70. The gap between 100 and 70 is not incremental; it represents a different order of sustained excellence.

India drew the match, which created its own small irony — a milestone so massive, celebrated in a result so modest. But the result was beside the point. Tendulkar had done something the sport had never seen. Whether it will ever be seen again is genuinely uncertain.