Emotions were riding high at the Bombay Gymkhana Club on Tuesday, as Sachin Tendulkar played at the historic club after a long gap. The Mumbai Indians captain picked up from where he had left since his world record feat of 200 not out, albeit in a practice game, clobbering his way to 78 runs off just 33 balls, as his team gained valuable match practice going into the third season of the IPL, the team's website, themumbaiindians.com, reported.

The Bombay Gymkhana was the first venue in India to host a full-scale cricket match featuring an Indian cricket team. This was between the Parsis and the Europeans in 1877. The Gymkhana was also the first stadium to host a Test match in India in 1933, the only Test it ever hosted. The significance of the club to cricket in Mumbai, and to the old-timers, is simply overwhelming.

The Mumbai Indians were divided into two sidesu00a0 MI 'A' and MI 'B' that were captained by Tendulkar and Zaheer Khan, respectively. The bustling streets of Azad Maidan, off the pedestrian fashion street, had almost come to a standstill, as hundreds of people gathered around the barricades to get a glimpse of Tendulkar and the rest. The master's blitzkrieg was the icing on the cake for the onlookers.

Zaheer Khan was smashed straight back past his head for two sixes shots that brought back memories of Tendulkar annihilating Michael Kasprowiz and Damien Fleming at Sharjah a decade back.

Tendulkar was severe at anything short from Zaheer and Dilharo Fernando, hooking and cutting at ease, finishing with a tally of 10 boundaries and 5 sixes, until he was run out.