Statue of India batting great Sachin Tendulkar unveiled at Mumbai stadium

MUMBAI: Sachin Tendulkar watched as a statue of the India batting great was unveiled Wednesday at Mumbai's Wankhede Stadium during the Cricket World Cup.                   

The statue at Tendulkar's home ground was inaugurated by Maharashtra chief minister Eknath Shinde. Mumbai, where Tendulkar was born and bred on a steady diet of cricket, is the state capital of Maharashtra.                  

“I am truly humbled when I stand here. I go to this ground – there are thousands of images that come to my head and thoughts, so many incredible memories," Tendulkar said. "It is truly an honor to walk on this turf which has given me everything in life.”                   

The statue was unveiled in front of the Sachin Tendulkar Stand at the ground where second-place India faces Sri Lanka on Thursday.                   

Tendulkar finished his illustrious career at the Wankhede, playing his 200th and final test against West Indies in 2013. He scored a career total of 15,921 runs along with 51 hundreds – both of them all-time test records.                   

He also hit 49 hundreds in 463 ODIs for India, finishing with 18,426 runs – also all-time records. He is the only batsman to score 100 centuries in international cricket.                   

Tendulkar’s career-crowning moment came at the Wankhede where he was part of the 2011 World Cup-winning team against Sri Lanka. It was India’s second title after winning in 1983, a moment that inspired Tendulkar to take up cricket seriously.