MUMBAI: Fans will soon get to see a life-size statue of cricket legend Sachin Tendulkar at the Wankhede stadium.
Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA) president Amol Kale announced the news on Tuesday. It will be the first instance of a player’s statue being installed at the iconic stadium. The statue will be unveiled during the 2023 ICC World Cup. It will be erected outside the MCA lounge on a circular platform.
The MCA is celebrating the Golden Jubilee year of the Master Blaster at the Wankhede and the statue is a part of the celebration.
In cricket stadiums across the country, there are only a handful of life-size statues. Only three different statues of the former Indian captain Colonel CK Nayudu have been erected thus far. They are located at the Holkar Stadium in Indore, the Vidarbha Cricket Association (VCA) stadium in Nagpur, and the VDCA stadium in Andhra.
The Master Blaster was present at the MCA with Amol Kale and interacted with reporters.
“This decision is a pleasant surprise for me, 1998 is when it all started at the Wankhede. The journey started here for me. Played my first Ranji match here. Long ago, Achrekar sir reprimanded me here and from thereon I became a serious cricketer. I played my last match at this very venue. Life has come full circle for me here. I have wonderful memories of this place, some memorable and some not-so-good. It’s a big moment for me,” Sachin said.
The legendary batter reminisced about his memories of the Wankhede and said that it holds a special place in his heart.
“I am still a 25 -year-old with 25 years of experience I would say. It’s good and I would like to thank the MCA for this really great gesture. It’s a very special place for me and a lot of things happened in my career because of the MCA. The amount of time that I have spent here is second to none and I have enjoyed being here and playing here. A special place for me. I got the message from MCA regarding the statue and it’s a special occasion for me. I came here to discuss the type of statue that will be created and to identify a place for it. Things such as these are rare and unique,” stated the former India player.
MCA President Amol Kale mentioned that the statue will be unveiled during the 2023 ICC World Cup that will be held in India.
“We will unveil the statue during the World Cup as a lot of members from the cricket fraternity will be here and will try to make it a grand occasion,” Kale said.
Sachin has featured in 200 Tests, 463 ODIs, and 1 T20I for India, scoring 34,357 runs across all formats. The Master Blaster holds the record for most international centuries with 100 hundreds to his name. He won the World Cup in 2011 at the Wankhede. (ANI)
Also Read: On this day in 2010: Tendulkar became first batter to score double century in ODIs
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