[1] The series, not initially in the ICC Future Tours Programme, was hastily arranged by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) following the postponement of India's scheduled tour to South Africa to December, with that series itself reduced to 2 Tests and 3 ODIs due to a spat between the BCCI and Cricket South Africa.

[3][4] Debuting in the international Test series, Mohammed Shami took 4 wickets giving 71 runs off 17 overs he bowled in the first innings.

This performance was compared with the best score by a medium-paced Indian bowler Syed Abid Ali who took 6 wickets giving 55 runs off 17 overs against Australia in 1967.

[11] Being the 199th Test match of Tendulkar and his last at Eden Gardens, the Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB) celebrated the event in a grand scale.

[14] He had retired from ODIs in December 2012,[15] and from the Twenty20 format in October 2013, after he played the 2013 Champions League Twenty20, where his team Mumbai Indians took the winner's trophy.

[17] On his request, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) agreed to schedule the match at Wankhede Stadium, his home ground in Mumbai.

[19] On 11 November, MCA named the Association's ground at Mahavir Nagar, Kandivali in North Mumbai as "Sachin Tendulkar Gymkhana Club".

[18] The online ticket booking for the match started from 11 November on Kyazoonga.com, and crashed multiple times due to high traffic.

[22] On 12 November, India Today organized a day-long Salaam Sachin Conclave where various cricketers, celebrities of Bollywood, politicians and others spoke about him.