Press Trust of India
MUMBAI, Ap 13: Not a stranger to honours and accolades, master batsman Sachin Tendulkar on Monday said his wax statue adorning the iconic Madame Tussauds in London would be both an appreciation and reflection of his contribution to Indian cricket.
"It is a great honour to be there at the Tussauds. I know I am the first sportsperson of the country to be there. I think it is an appreciation and a reflection of my contribution to Indian cricket," he said after unveiling the statue.
Tendulkar said he was spellbound after seeing the statue which will be inaugurated at the Tussauds on April 24, his birthday.
"I am not a person who normally reacts easily to anything. But when I and my family saw it, something identical to myself, my reaction was something different. I have not reacted like that before, my reaction was special. It was so real, it was fantastic. But I am glad it does not breath.
"(My son) Arjun wanted to take down the bat and start playing but I told him not to get very close," he said.
Sachin Tendulkar (R) poses next to his wax statue, to be kept at the Madame Tussauds Studios in London, in Mumbai.
Asked next to whom he would want his wax statue to be placed at the Tussauds, Tendulkar said, "I don't mind to be next to anybody. The fact that it will be there itself was a great honour. There are so many great personalities there including Indians," he said.
Asked if he felt authorities at Tussauds should have done it earlier, Tendulkar said, "I am not the person to decide whether my statue should have been one or two year before or this year. I am not concerned about that. I am happy that I will be there now. It is a happy moment."
Tendulkar said he will go to London after the Indian Premier League season two in South Africa and see for himself his wax statue at the Tussauds.
"Right from 15 years of age I have thought of going to the Tussauds and even during my stay in England to play cricket I did not have time to go there because of my schedule. This time I will be there to know how this wax statues are made of," he said.
Tendulkar has achieved almost everything as a cricketer could dreamt of except for one -- to win the World Cup for the country.
"Every cricketer has a dream. For me I want to win the World Cup for the country that is my dream."
Also see from archives: