On Sachin Tendulkar's birthday, people thank 'Master Blaster' for silently spreading love
Apr 24, 2021
New Delhi [India], April 24 : While many remember Sachin Tendulkar for his elegant straight drives and glorious cover drives on the cricket pitch, the people the Master Blaster has helped during the testing times remember him as a philanthropist.
On the occasion of Tendulkar's birthday, these people thanked him for all the love and support the legend has bestowed on them.
"Because of you, we have been able to spread our wings and reach out to children in Kolkata, Assam, Manipur, and even Visakhapatnam," said Ameeta Chatterjee, managing trustee, Ekam Foundation.
"Because I still remember Master Blaster has always helped me, he has been there with me," said former Indian cricketer Vinod Kambli.
Aslam Chaudhary -- Tendulkar's batmaker -- with teary eyes remembered the time when the former cricketer frequently called to enquire about his health.
"Later on I found out that Sachin was constantly in touch with doctors in the hospital and was enquiring about my health. He rang me up and told me not to worry about anything and the things will be taken care of," said Aslam.
In April 2020, Tendulkar pledged to feed 5,000 people for one month as the country grappled through the coronavirus pandemic. A non-profit organisation named Apnalaya had confirmed the development on Twitter and went on to thank Tendulkar for his contribution.
The former India cricketer also donated ventilators which saved the lives of many children.
"In the past, we used to manually hand ventilate a lot of sick children but now with the help of ventilators that are donated by you (Sachin), we are able to give quality care to the children who are coming to us," said Dr Shajin, Makunda Hospital.
"We are very very grateful to the Sachin Tendulkar foundation for supporting the five villages," said Vinayak Lohani, founder of Parivar Education Society.
In March last year, Tendulkar had donated Rs 25 lakh each to the Prime Minister's Relief Fund and the Chief Minister of Maharashtra's Relief Fund to aid the battle against COVID-19.
Regarded as one of the greatest batsmen ever, Tendulkar holds the record for being the highest run-scorer of all time in international cricket, having notched up 18,426 runs in ODIs and 15,921 runs in Test matches. He was last seen in Road Safety World Series this year where he led India Legends to the title.
