Gavaskar conferred honorary doctorate

Mumbai:

Cricket legend Sunil Gavaskar was on Wednesday conferred with an honorary doctorate by the Dr D Y Patil University in Navi Mumbai.

The former India captain, the first man to complete 10,000 runs in Test cricket, said after receiving the honour from Chancellor of the University and Maharashtra Governor S C Jamir, that it was his childhood wish to become a physician in the footsteps of his aunt.

"My aunt is a doctor. Since childhood I wanted to be a doctor but I did not have (pointing to his brains) to become one," he said.

Replying to a remark by Dr D Y Patil that he was a statistician's delight, Gavaskar gave the example of how statisticians like to be challenged on cricket facts.

"A couple of years ago, after (Australian Captain) Ricky Ponting scored a century in each innings of a Test match for the third time, a statistician called me and told me that now all your records are broken."

"But statisticians always like to be challenged. I told him I still hold one record that I am the only batsman to have been out on the first ball of a Test thrice. He said, no Sunil, there is a Bangladeshi player who has been out first ball five times and now he bats number nine," he said.

The University on its third convocation also conferred Honorary doctorate of science to the Prime Minister of Mauritius, Dr Navinchandra Ramgoolam, which was received from the Governor by Mauritius Minister of Social Security Sheilabai Bappoo.

Honorary doctorate was also presented to R C Sinha, vice-chairman and Managing Director, Maharashtra Airport Development Company Limited, the Vice-chancellor of the DY Patil University James Thomas said.

Thomas said 17 gold medals were presented for different specialties in medicine.

Former India opener Gavaskar asked students to work toward fulfilling the dream of former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi.

"The dream that Mrs Indira Gandhi had that every Indian should have 'roti' (food), 'kapda'(clothes) and 'makaan' (house), has not been fulfilled. I am sure you all will work toward fulfilling that."