Sachin Tendukar Storms Sydney: Fund-raising, Sea-food And a Bit of Cricket Too
Sachin Tendulkar, ICC World Cup 2015 brand ambassador, attended a fund-raising dinner in Sydney for one of his charities, Apanlaya.
Sachin Tendulkar, a ICC World Cup 2015 brand ambassador, took time out to attend an exclusive fund-raising dinner at top Sydney restaurant Doyle's, to raise money for one of his charities, Apanlaya. In just under four hours, over $60,000 (Australian) was raised as guests paid not only $1,500 to attend this VIP exclusive evening but also bid at an auction of various memorabilia relating to the Little Master.
As the sun set in the background, the waterside restaurant, a Sydney icon and a favourite haunt of visiting celebrities that Tendulkar himself has patronised in previous trips, proved to be a perfect setting. Billed as a casual evening, a visibly relaxed Tendulkar milled around with guests over a glass or two of wine and some delectable seafood dishes.(Sachin, Gayle Choose Same Day for ODI Double Ton)
The private function room hosted about 40 guests all of who had plenty of opportunity to spend time with the legend himself.
A highlight of the evening was a question-and-answer session where Tendulkar shared his views on a wide range of topics.(Sachin Feels India Can do Better at World Cup)
When asked about his predictions for the finals of the ongoing cricket World Cup, Sachin replied, "While I am the brand ambassador for ICC, I cannot take any sides. But I can say that the defending champions are ready to defend".
Tendulkar spoke about his admiration for the Australian attitude to the game, his own awe of Sir Donald Bradman and his meeting with him on his 90th birthday, and of course, his love for the Sydney Cricket Ground, which he believes is his favourite outside India.(Sachin Steals the Show at MCG)
"After all, any ground you score hundreds becomes your favourite ground and yes, Sydney has been an excellent venue for me," he added.
An emotional Tendulkar also spoke about finishing his career at the Wankhede Stadium.
"This was my first game which my mother actually came to see. And as the evening was coming to an end with only a couple of overs to go, I could hardly hold back my emotions at ending my career. The next thing I see on the giant screen is the camera on my mother.
"I choked up, in fact I had to walk away from the wicket, tapping the ground to get my emotions in control. I did play the next balls and as I was getting on top of the situation, they showed my wife on screen. It was an emotional moment for me," Tendulkar remembered.
Tendulkar also spoke openly of the period when he went through a slump in form, and of how his brother Ajit's advice helped him turn it all around.
He had some interesting comments to make about the future of the game as well. Tendulkar seemed confident that Test matches and the 20/20 format will survive, but observed that the ICC needs to relook at how the 50-over game is played.
"It does tend to get boring and predictable sometimes. One option is to allow for two innings of 25 overs each per team but only ten wickets in all for both innings. This will allow the coaches also to confer with the players and each team can then judge how hard they want to go", he said.
Tendulkar conceded he has suggested this to the ICC but that they have yet to get back to him.
After dinner, an auction followed which included a genuine bat used by Tendulkar, his jersey specially made for his 200th Test match and also a photographic print of Sachin walking out from the dressing room to his last game. Over $25,000 was raised for charity from this auction.
(Article Courtesy: Rajni Anand Luthra; Photos: Indian Link Australia Facebook)