The Master Blaster has become the first Indian sportsperson influencer after he joined LinkedIn on Thursday.
Four years ago, Indian batting legend Sachin Tendulkar decided to call it a day and retired from all forms of cricket. On March 2, Tendulkar joined social media site LinkedIn, becoming the first Indian sportsperson influencer, and shared the tale behind what prompted him to retire.
Here's Sachin's tweet making the announcement:
During the champions trophy in October 2013, Tendulkar recalls that he had to force himself to wake up and go about his day. “My mornings would start with a gym workout, a routine I had been following for 24 years. But that morning in October, something had changed. Were these signs...signs that I should stop? Signs that the game that has been so dear to me, would no longer be a part of my daily routine?” Tendulkar wrote.
Recalling when his idol Sunil Gavaskar decided to call it a day, Tendulkar said that he had made up his mind to quit when he found himself checking the clock to see how much time there was left for lunch and tea intervals.
“Suddenly I knew exactly what he meant. My mind and my body were telling me the same thing. Maybe, it’s time to hang up my boots,” he wrote. Tendulkar knew that he would miss the energy from the crowds. “The cheer of ‘Sachin, Sachin’ wouldn’t be heard anymore and I don’t know whether I was ready for that,” he added.
I also remembered the words of Billy Jean King, at Wimbledon a few years ago - you will know for After he finally retired in Mumbai, the first thing that crossed Tendulkar’s head was, “What now?”
“One of the highlights of my post-cricket years has been the adoption of Puttamraju Kandriga, a village in Andhra Pradesh. Seeing the village don a new look after two years of intensive infrastructural development, had a joy that can’t be put into words,” says Tendulkar, while talking about his second innings.
In addition, Tendulkar involved in a project called ‘Spreading Happiness’ that provides electricity to deprived areas. “Arrangements to tap solar energy have been made in over 73 villages and nearly 25,000 people have been impacted by the same. The mission to ‘light up’ homes across the length and breadth of the country will continue,” he said.
While he also is actively involved in the Swacch Bharat Abhiyan, and also has time to focus on other sports such as football (Tendulkar co-owns the Kerala Blasters ISL team), the cricket legend says the most important changes in his second innings are the changes he has made in his personal life. “I now have more time to give to my family, to travel, to pursue my passions and to focus on things that are close to my heart, ones that I can now explore. The love and affection from fans has remained unchanged, the chants still resonate and appear wherever I travel, which is amazing and something for which I am eternally grateful,” he said.
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 "sachin tendulkar, andhra pradesh, sunil gavaskar, wimbledon, mumbai, Puttamraju Kandriga, village, web exclusive, cricket, Linke")
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