Mumbai: The city of Mumbai, which will host Sachin Tendulkar’s 200th and final Test from Thursday, entered the ‘Celebrate Sachin’ mode formally on Monday with the Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA) honouring The Master by naming its Kandivali facility after him.
The facility has been named ‘The Sachin Tendulkar Gymkhana’.
Mahendra Singh Dhoni and his ‘battalion’ were present at the function, held at the Kandivali club. Darren Sammy was there too with the West Indian team, as were greats like Sunil Gavaskar. But even then (quite expectedly though) the loudest cheers from more than a thousand fans were reserved for Sachin.
As if for a rehearsal of what would be enacted at the Wankhede from Thursday, the ‘Sachin, Sachin’ chants reverberated at the three entrances of the Gymkhana. All for a glimpse of the nation’s favourite sportsperson.
Present on the dais during The Master’s felicitation were a host of political bigwigs. From Maharashtra chief minister Prithviraj Chavan to Union minister and MCA president Sharad Pawar, everyone showered praises on Sachin, not just for being the cricketer he is, but for being a role model for millions.
Sachin, dressed in a blue T-shirt and denims, was his humble self. He thanked the MCA for the “kind gesture” and thanked the fans for the support that they have given him for over two decades. “Thank you for all for the respect and love that you have showered on me, not just for this evening, but for 24 years,” he said.
He didn’t hide that it feels different to see a facility named after him. “It felt different when I walked in at the club today and read my name at the top (of the gate)… I am not used to it,” he said. For a man who enjoys fame like no other living being in a nation of over a billion people, such an observation is startling. A lesson for many as well.
The respect that Sachin commands, it is only obvious that the MCA would go out of its way to assist Sachin in his cricketing endeavours. But Sachin thanked the association for their help in providing him with perfect practice facilities. In the icon’s own words, “without the preparations, things wouldn’t have been the same”.
The Kandivali facility will be available for all at free of cost. Sachin invited everyone to make the most of the opportunity to enhance their skills and stressed on building a “sporting culture” in the country. “I sincerely hope that the younger generation can make use of all these facilities to improve themselves and bring laurels to our country,” he said.
The crowd, majority being youngsters, were a little restless as there was a delay in the proceedings. But as Sachin, along with wife Anjali, stepped in, the restlessness got transformed into an overwhelming celebration.
For the initial few minutes of the programme, the MCA opted for a song-and dance routine. While one wasn’t sure if the audience liked it, what followed the next seemed much more apt for the occasion. An audio-visual tribute, titled ‘Aapla Sachin’ (Our Sachin), featuring Dilip Vengsarkar, Rahul Dravid, Javagal Srinath and Anil Kumble, was watched keenly by those present.
There were accolades galore. For example, former India pacer Srinath said: “In my cricketing years, the reference point was always Don Bradman. Now it has to change. It has to be Sachin Tendulkar.”
Srinath also hopes to see Sachin as a cricket administrator.
Coming to facts, ‘The Sachin Tendulkar Gymkhana’ is likely to be quickly popular, as, unlike South Mumbai and Central Mumbai, which have several Gymkhanas and grounds, Mumbai’s western suburbs have very few.
