Superstar Tendulkar keeps cause in mind

SACHIN Tendulkar is ready for catch-ups, slip-ups and entertaining cricket in Sunday’s all-star charity contest, but it is Australia’s catastrophic bushfire crisis that is weighing most heavily on his mind.

Tendulkar, India’s greatest ever cricketer, is the biggest name involved in the match at Melbourne’s Junction Oval featuring teams captained by Ricky Ponting and Adam Gilchrist. The once-in-a-generation superstar shunned the spotlight throughout his decorated career and that trend has largely continued since retiring in 2013. But when Lee reached out to the reclusive legend, wanting to put him in touch with Cricket Australia chief executive Kevin Roberts regarding the fundraising fixture, the answer was a prompt and enthusiastic yes.

Tendulkar is looking forward to chewing the fat with Lee plus Ponting and Andrew Symonds, having struck up a rapport with the two batsmen when they were at IPL franchise Mumbai Indians.

But that is not why the 46year-old, who fell in love with Australia while spending almost four months here as an 18-year-old on a Test tour, agreed to make the trip.

“We must enjoy each other’s company and, above all, not forget the cause. That’s the prime reason I am here,” Tendulkar said at the SCG.

“This is an alarming situation. It’s catastrophic, that’s an understatement.

“You see the number of lives it has affected and not just humans, but also the wildlife,” Tendulkar said.