Sachin Tendulkar, captain of Mumbai Indians, who decided to lead his team against Deccan Chargers in the Indian Premier League match here on Sunday, preferred to avoid referring to the demise of Sri Sathya Sai Baba when he went out for the toss here at Rajiv Gandhi Stadium.
"I always enjoy playing in Hyderabad and it is a lovely place to to play in front of a wonderful crowd," was all Sachin said at the toss, putting an end to the suspense which prevailed till half-an-hour before the commencement of the game this afternoon.
The huge roar of applause from the near-full crowd at the stadium which welcomed the great cricketer from Mumbai was proof of his popularity and how eagerly they were all awaiting for Sachin to play in this big match.
The organisers decided to switch off the music systems and also disband the cheer girls squads from the venue as a mark of respect to the departed Sai Baba.It was also decided to observe a two-minute silence at 3. 57 pm as a mark of respect to the departed soul.
Earlier, Sachin took the decision to play despite going through a phase of shock due to the death of his spiritual guru Satya Sai Baba. "Perhaps, it is his passion for the game which took precedence over everything else even today," remarked a member of the Mumbai Indians contingent. He even reminded that Sachin played in the 1999 World Cup despite the demise of his father after taking a brief break.
The Master Blaster is an ardent devotee of Sai Baba and always made it a point to visit Prashanti Nilayam whenever he had the time to do so. The most recent one being when he sought the blessings of Baba just before the 2011 World Cup which India won.
On Sunday morning, Sachin politely refused to entertain cake-cutting by the Mumbai Indians franchisee owners to mark his birthday, sources said.
But, just as everyone was in a state of suspense whether he would play or not, a visibly poignant Sachin attended the customary meeting and came up with the usual short speech reminding the teammates about the need to play with passion against Deccan Chargers.
