Indian batting icon Sachin Tendulkar has been inducted into the International Cricket Council’s Hall of Fame alongside South African pace legend Allan Donald.

Joining Tendulkar and Donald in the Hall of Fame was two-time World Cup-winning Australian woman cricketer Cathryn Fitzpatrick.

At the induction ceremony held in London recently,   Tendulkar said, it is an honour to be inducted into the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame which cherishes the contribution of cricketers over generations.

He thanked his family and coach, who has supported him in his journey in international cricket for close to two and a half decades.

Tendulkar, the most prolific batsman in history, was inducted immediately after becoming eligible for induction, which requires that a player should have played his last international match at least five years before.

The 46-year-old former right-hand batsman is regarded as the greatest to have played the game along with Sir Donald Bradman and remains the top run-accumulator in both Tests and ODIs.

Tendulkar, who retired in November 2013, scored 15,921 runs in Tests and 18,426 in ODIs, both of which remain records. He is the sixth Indian to be inducted into the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame.