Mubashir Alam Wani
Srinagar, Feb 22: Master Blaster Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar, who along with his family is on a visit to Kashmir, was on Thursday spotted in Srinagar, enjoying a Shikara ride at the world-famous Dal Lake.
Tendulkar, accompanied by his family, arrived in Kashmir last week. After being spotted playing gully cricket with the locals in the surroundings of Gulmarg area, he was seen in Srinagar today for a brief time.
Sachin was seen enjoying the Shikara ride along with his wife and daughter in Srinagar at Dal Lake, where he praised Kashmir, saying he was enjoying the visit.
Notably, on arrival in the valley, Tendulkar first visited a bat factory in south Kashmir, and then later reminisced about his first Kashmir willow, a gift from his sister, highlighting the deep personal connections that cricket fosters within him.
“The first bat given to me was by my sister and it was a Kashmir willow bat. Ab main yahan hoon to Kashmir willow ko to milna banta hai! P.S.: An interesting fact; some of my favourite bats had only about 5-6 grains. How many grains do your bats have?” Sachin wrote on X.
On his arrival, Tendulkar explored the beauty of Pahalgam, revelling in the scenic vistas of Betab Valley, following which he moved to world famous ski-destination Gulmarg where he expressed his excitement and extended his best wishes to the organizers and athletes of Khelo India Winter Games.
Cricket legend Tendulkar also paid a visit to a temple in South Kashmir and to the Aman Setu bridge, situated at the Line of Control (LoC) in the Uri sector of Jammu and Kashmir.
Notably, Sachin is currently on his first-ever visit to Kashmir and the Indian cricketing legend seems to be enjoying his time, and posting regular updates about his visit on his social media handles.
In one such social media interaction shared on X, Sachin gets out of his car and talks to the locals, asking if he can play cricket with them on the street, to which the locals readily agreed.
In a style that may remind Indian cricket fans of the glory days of the sport, Sachin takes to the crease and asks the locals “Kaun hai tumhara bowler (Who is your bowler)”.
During his brief stint at the crease, Sachin executed some of his signature shots, like as the leg glance, and even guarded the ball with ease while complimenting the local boy’s delivery.
However, on the final ball of the over, Sachin turned the bat upside down and told the boy to take his wicket, stating “Ye OUT karna padega mujhe (You have to get me OUT now)”.
