What recession? Tendulkar gifted penthouse and golden bat

By Qaiser Mohammad Ali

Noida (Uttar Pradesh): In these times of global downturn, Sachin Tendulkar on Tuesday rushed to this fledgling Uttar Pradesh city on the outskirts of Delhi and returned with the key of an expensive penthouse overlooking one of the finest golf courses in the National Capital Region and a golden bat. Not to mention of the accolades that were poured on him at a function where awestruck students excitedly chanted “Saaaaachin, Saaaachin…” thoughout.

Jaypee Group, one of fastest growing cement producers of India, had organised the function to announce Tendulkar as their brand ambassador. They celebrated their “long-term” tie-up with confetti and continuous chants of “Sasaachin, Saaachin…” by students of Jaypee Institute of Technology University, the venue of the function.

It turned out to be one of the lengthiest press conferences I have attended, with Tendulkar happily answering wide ranging questions in front of about 3,000 people, comprising mostly awestruck students. Jaiprakash Gaur, founder-chairman of Jaypee Group and a Tendulkar fan, asked the 35-year-old bating maestro not to stop until he completes 100 international centuries. Tendulkar, having hit 43 one-day tons and 42 in Tests, is currently 15 short of the ‘target’ set by the diminutive Gaur. The founder-chairman is 79 mention cricket, rather Tendulkar, and turns a 12-year-old cricket buff. This quality was evident in ample measure here.

THE MAN WITH THE GOLDEN BAT

To further egg him on, the golden bat that Gaur presented to Tendulkar had ‘M 100’ written in bold and it was explained that it signified “mission 100”. In other words, Gaur wanted the Mumbaikar not to stop before a century of centuries. He said that he was “not retiring” and also asked Tendulkar to carry till the mission was accomplished, something that amused the cricketer’s wife Anjali who was sitting on the stage. “I am not retiring and Sachin should also not retire for 11 years,” said Gaur, drawing yet another round of applause from the packed house.

No one spelt out the duration of the Tendulkar-Jaypee Group arrangement, but Gaur said that the former India captain would be involved in building a stadium/cricket academy, in education and hospitality.

INDIAN PREMIER LEAGUE

Tendulkar, who will soon leave for South Africa for the Indian Premier League (IPL) starting this weekend, later answered a variety of questions. He said the Mumbai Indians, which he captains, will perform well in the 37-day tournament. Sporting unusually long stubble, Tendulkar said his team was a balanced outfit.

“Mumbai Indians is a well balanced side with Sanath Jayasuriya, JP Duminy, Lasith Malinga, Shaun Pollock in mentor’s role, Jonty Rhodes (the fielding coach), Shikhar Dhawan and so many others make it a nice blend of seniors and juniors. It (the combination) will be beneficial for the team. I am looking forward to the tournament,” he said. Mumbai Indians plays the tournament opener against Chennai Super Kings in Cape Town on Saturday.

Tendulkar, however, pointed out a shortcoming in IPL format – “Certain IPL teams didn’t have icon players that gave them an unfair advantage.” He was perhaps referring to Chennai Super Kings, which bought Mahendra Singh Dhoni at the auction, giving it strength while majority of the eight teams had one icon player each who was not up for grabs at the player auction.

MULTIPLE SUGGESTIONS, NOT CAPTAINS

Tendulkar said that Mumbai Indians would not have multiple captains. “Not captain, but multiple suggestions would come (to the captain). There are other players who will walk up to him to give suggestions. The captain takes the decisions, but others will offer suggestions,” he said.

The multiple captain issue is currently being debated after Kolkata Knightriders coach John Buchanan propounded the theory, inviting mostly criticism from experts. The former Australia coach had said he was planning to have four captains, instead of just Sourav Ganguly, who led the side last year.

Tendulkar declined to comment on the relocation of the IPL to South Africa, but said that it would not impact its popularity.

Answering another question, the former India captain said he has three gurus – his late father, elder brother Ajit and veteran coach Ramakant Achrekar. “If these people would not have been there, I would have been a different person,” he averred.