Press Trust of India
New York, Nov 3: Legendary batsman Sachin Tendulkar stated here Monday that cricket might be the second most popular game in the world but in order to make it a global sport more countries need to play in the showpiece event, the ICC World Cup.
Tendulkar, who is here along with Australian spin legend Shane Warne for the inaugural ‘Cricket All Stars 2015’, a three-city Twenty20 rubber involving retired stars of the game, said the idea behind the series is not only to popularise the game in the US but to globalise it as there is a need to have more countries taking up the sport competitively.
“People have opinions that there should be less teams. But we need to find a solution and work towards it together to make cricket a global sport and not have just eight-12 countries compete all the time and be happy with that,” Tendulkar stated.
“From the time of the first World Cup in 1975 till now, there are only nine-12 teams that compete for the title. If we don’t take steps toward globalising the sport it is never going to happen,” he asserted.
‘Cricket All Stars 2015’ series, mooted by Tendulkar and Warne, will bring together 28 of the biggest names of the game, including former Indian skipper Sourav Ganguly, Virender Sehwag, Sri Lankan spin legend Muttiah Muralitharan, former West Indian captain Brian Lara and former Pakistan pacers Wasim Akram and Shoaib Akhtar.
Tendulkar said retirement does not mean you never pick up a cricket bat again. “The reason for stopping cricket is because you cannot be competitive at that level but that does not mean you stop enjoying the game. This is what we are doing, we are enjoying cricket,” he pointed out.
“Players in the series are picking up the cricket bat for fun and enjoyment and if in the process they inspire thousands others to watch and learn the game, there is nothing wrong with it,” the iconic batsman added.
