It was another record but of a different kind for master blaster Sachin Tendulkar. Madame Tussauds flew the cricketer's wax figure some 7,000 km to meet the legend in person here Monday and made him the first Indian sportsman to be featured by the London-headquartered studio.

And Tendulkar was truly delighted, coming face to face with the likeness of his wax figure at the downtown Taj Lands End Hotel.

'I am very impressed with the figure and delighted to be honoured by Madame Tussauds,' said the renowned cricketer, who holds several records to his name, including the batsman with the highest number of Test centuries.

'It is the first time we have ever launched a figure overseas. But we really wanted Sachin to see his likeness before it 'meets' the public,' said Liz Edwards of Madame Tussauds, London.

'The figure will now be returning to London to join the ranks of sporting greats past and present in our sports zone. There will also be a cricketing challenge around the figure where guests can test their skills against the master-blaster',' she said.

Tendulkar had met the sculptors of Madame Tussauds here earlier in the year to be measured and photographed for the creation of his figure. He also donated the cricket whites that his striking wax double is wearing.

Tendulkar's figure was created at their studios in west London over a three-month period, starting with a a perfect clay sculpture from which the moulds are made for an amazingly life-like wax figure.

Then it was over to a team of skilled hair and colour artists to insert the hair by hand and to build life-like skin tones using layer upon layer of oil paint - every freckle, mole, dimple and wrinkle are accurately reproduced, the firm said.