The Wankhede Stadium reverberated with the chants of Sachin, Sachin… following the unveiling of life-sized statue of the legendary cricketer and Bharat Ratna awardee Sachin Tendulkar by Maharashtra Chief Minister, Eknath Shinde in the presence of Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) Secretary Jay Shah, its Vice-president Rajeev Shukla, Treasurer Ashish Shelar, the Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA) President Amol Kale, Secretary Ajinkya Naik, Rajya Sabha member and former ICC & MCA President Sharad Pawar among others on Wednesday evening, ahead of the India's World Cup match against Sri Lanka in Mumbai.

Amidst the rhythmic beats off the dhol-tasha, fireworks accentuated by the presence of Master Blaster himself along with his family members including Ajit, wife Anjali, daughter Sara, his elder brother Ajit among others including Team India's supporter and one of the greatest Sachin fan, blowing conch shell and waving the Indian tri-colour added to the patriotic fervor of the occasion.

The 1.5 ton Bronze cast sculpture with a total end to end height of 22 feet is the artistic creation of Ahmednagar’s Pramod Kamble, which is strategically placed between the Vijay Merchant and the Sachin Tendulkar stands between level 2 and 3. The same aims to serve reminder to the numerous cricket fans of Sachin’s various landmarks and unforgettable moments of his cricketing journey spanning three decades right from his school days to his final appearance for India in his 200^th Test Match against West Indies on his home ground way back in November, 2013.

Sachin Tendulkar in an emotional address to the huge gathering later at the MCA lounge which was attended by various dignitaries including former Mumbai team mates, MCA’s Apex Council Members, BCCI’s first Chief Administrative Officer and the Tournament Director for the 2011 Men’s World Cup Prof. Ratnakar Shetty, former MCA VP Vinod Deshpande, Legendary India’s Women Cricket Captain Diana Edulji among others shared various anecdotes of his association with the iconic venue right from his young days as a 10-year old where he along with his brother and his 24 odd friends sneaked into watch the India-West Indies Test in 1983 without a ticket, his being a ball boy during a World Cup match and later being invited by the Mumbai Ranji and Indian Captain  Sunil Gavaskar to visit the Dressing room, making his debut for Mumbai as a 14-year old and occupying his empty seat later in presence of 7-8 stalwarts who had already played for India, his turning up for Mumbai crucial game few hours after landing from an international assignment in New Zealand, suggesting MS Dhoni’s name for leadership position for the Indian team after the World Cup debacle in West Indies way back in 2007, his preparation for the 2011 World Cup at home  and later his happy memories on being part of the successful Indian team four years later at Wankhede itself, before retiring in front of his family members which included his mother. He also praised the current Indian team lead by Rohit Sharma for their brand of cricket during the current ICC World Cup and hoped that they would fulfill the expectations of billions of Indian supporters once again.

Lauding the various cricketing achievements of Sachin, BCCI Secretary Jay Shah shared some interesting facts where in the former Indian captain batted on all days of the year except 1st May and that he never scored 58 and 75 runs throughout his illustrious career.

Chief Minister Eknath Shinde while paying tribute to the 50-year legendary cricketer and son of soil too highlighted that he watched Sachin Tendulkar bat in person or on TV during the course of various matches and later turned it off when he was dismissed. He further stated that the life size idol of  Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar will immortalise the Wankhede Stadium and will inspire India to produce may more Arjun’s like his son who will make a mark at the big stage. Signing off on a humorous note he also shared that he also recites Sachin’s name daily every morning as a source of inspiration, akin to that of Lord Ganesha in the face of various bouncers and googlies that are thrown by the opposition daily in his day to day work.