If Tendulkar and Gavaskar can retire, why not Sharad Pawar from MCA: Uddhav

Hitting out at NCP chief Sharad Pawar for contesting the upcoming Mumbai Cricket Association elections, Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray on Monday said that the incumbent president of the cricket body has done little for the game in Mumbai for a long time.

"(Sachin) Tendulkar has retired. (Sunil) Gavaskar has retired, but the President has been batting for a long time, but his score is zero," Thackeray said.

He was addressing the representatives of the 3rd odd clubs in support of Pawar's rival faction Cricket First headed by Vijay Patil, who is involved in a straight fight with Pawar to take over the reins of MCA.

Shiv Sena has extended its complete support to Patil and his panel in their bid to unseat Pawar and the ruling Bal Mahaddalkar group in the polls scheduled on June 17.

While agreeing that sports and politics should not be mixed, the Sena Chief said he was backing Patil's panel as it comprised "genuinely good people", who had the game's interest upper most in their minds.

"I agree sports and politics should not be mixed, but we have to step in when a politician takes control of an association for decades," Thackeray said.