Mumbai: Sachin Tendulkar has suggested a unique way to retain fan interest in Test cricket: involve school children for free.
Speaking at the launch of Harsha Bhogle's new book Out of the Box - Watching the Game We Love, Tendulkar, the highest run-scorer in Test as well as one-day cricket, cited his own example as a cricket fan which enabled him to realise his dream.
Bhogle's book launch was followed by a high-powered panel discussion on the changing face of the gentleman's game."I had suggested to the BCCI in one of their functions that when I was a 10-year-old boy, the first time I entered a stadium was when West Indies were playing India in Mumbai," he said. "That is still etched in my memory - that first walk inside the stadium.
"The BCCI should try and do that for school kids and college-going boys," he added. "Maybe on Saturdays and Sundays one stand could be kept for school children and other students. It would be free of cost for the toppers, whether they are toppers in sports or various other subjects. But it could become sort of an incentive for the toppers.
"They should be allowed to witness Test cricket, because that first introduction to live cricket inside a stadium will always stay with them forever. Out of those students, even if 10 per cent get converted into cricket fans, then that is success for us."
Tendulkar, who has written the introduction to Bhogle's book, was given the first copy at the launch. The book is a compilation of Bhogle's weekly columns for The Indian Express. This 275-page book is published by Viking from Penguin Books India.
Source
Speaking at the launch of Harsha Bhogle's new book Out of the Box - Watching the Game We Love, Tendulkar, the highest run-scorer in Test as well as one-day cricket, cited his own example as a cricket fan which enabled him to realise his dream.
Bhogle's book launch was followed by a high-powered panel discussion on the changing face of the gentleman's game."I had suggested to the BCCI in one of their functions that when I was a 10-year-old boy, the first time I entered a stadium was when West Indies were playing India in Mumbai," he said. "That is still etched in my memory - that first walk inside the stadium.
"The BCCI should try and do that for school kids and college-going boys," he added. "Maybe on Saturdays and Sundays one stand could be kept for school children and other students. It would be free of cost for the toppers, whether they are toppers in sports or various other subjects. But it could become sort of an incentive for the toppers.
"They should be allowed to witness Test cricket, because that first introduction to live cricket inside a stadium will always stay with them forever. Out of those students, even if 10 per cent get converted into cricket fans, then that is success for us."
Tendulkar, who has written the introduction to Bhogle's book, was given the first copy at the launch. The book is a compilation of Bhogle's weekly columns for The Indian Express. This 275-page book is published by Viking from Penguin Books India.
Source
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