Retired from the game he may be, but Sachin Tendulkar’s mere presence was good enough for a near-capacity crowd to go hysterical during India’s World Cup game against South Africa at the Melbourne Cricket Ground here on Sunday.
Having retired from international cricket in November 2013, Tendulkar hasn’t dropped in at international matches often and therefore the legend’s presence at the iconic venue was just the icing on the cake for the fans to lap up in such a marquee match.
Tendulkar is the ‘Brand Ambassador’ of the World Cup and once he arrived, he was quickly whisked away to the ICC’s Hospitality Zone with tight security in place.
However, the moment the MCG giant screen showed Tendulkar, clad in violet shirt and dark trousers, enjoying the match, the chants of “Sachiiin, Sachiiin” were back again.
It was as though he had never retired. When his image was flashed for the second time on the giant screen, he did wave at the crowd and it was met with deafening applause.
While the lucky ones in the ICC Hospitality Box got their share of selfies and autographs, the ones outside had to be content with clicking the ‘Master’ picture.
For Sachin, it seems as if he has now completed a ‘Circle of Life’ with the World Cup. In 1987, he was present at the Wankhede Stadium during the semi-finals as a ball boy and then was an integral part in the next six editions.
On Sunday, he was again back to cheering his team. In person, he was not on the turf, in spirit, he was very much there.
