Sachin Tendulkar loves road trips. It is being showcased in a television commercial in which he has fun along with his India team-mates Anil Kumble and Yuvraj Singh.
On one such road trip last year during the Indian Premier League from Mumbai to Pune, Tendulkar and his former India team-mate and close friend Kiran More were seen enjoying themselves, singing and enjoying songs on their ride for their Mumbai Indians match.
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More has been an integral part of Tendulkar’s life. The former India and Baroda wicket-keeper has been closely associated with Tendulkar even before the batting legend, who turns 50 on Monday, made his Ranji Trophy debut in the 1988-89 season.
The 60-year-old More, who played in 49 Tests and 94 ODIs between 1986 and 1993, featured in 25 Tests with Tendulkar right from the latter’s debut in Pakistan in 1989 till 1993.
More, one of India’s finest glovemen and who cared for juniors in the team, told News18 Cricketnext in connection with Tendulkar’s milestone birthday: “We are very close even today. Sachin has always remained humble, is always grounded. We always talk about the good old days. He walked into the Indian team as a 16-year-old. So, as a senior, someone who has been with the Indian team since 1983 and who made my Test debut in 1986, I always took it upon myself to take care of the young cricketers. I always had the habit of doing that. I did it to make the youngsters feel comfortable and settle down in the team. When you play together, you enjoy each other’s company and share great memories.”
More, remembered a shy Tendulkar visiting his home in Baroda for lunch even before the latter made his first-class debut. “When he first came to Baroda, he had not played Ranji Trophy. Chandrakant Pandit (More’s India team-mate and fellow stumper from Mumbai) asked if he could bring Sachin along. Sachin was 14-and-a-half or 15 at that time. We went home after practice, and had a nice lunch at my place. Those are moments that one cannot forget,” More said. “From the age of 15 till today, we are friends.”
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Talking of unforgettable moments with Tendulkar, More vividly remembers the partnership the two shared in the Perth Test of the 1991-92 tour. More reminisced: “We shared 81 runs for the ninth wicket at Perth, the innings in which Sachin made 114 and which he rates as one of his top hundreds.
“To be watching Sachin bat from the non-striker’s end, I was full of admiration for his batting. His shots through covers and point off the back foot on the bouncy Perth pitch, even the Australian slip fielders applauded quietly in admiration. Alan Border, Dean Jones and wicketkeeper Ian Healy were admiring Sachin’s strokes and wondered how a short guy on a bouncy pitch played off the back foot. You don’t get to see such innings often. Basically, you play the pull and cut on such pitches but here was Sachin playing through mid-off off the back foot as the ball was flying off the surface. The Aussies were appreciating him, winking at each other and nodding in adulation. That was one of the best innings I have seen in my Test career.”
More and Tendulkar shared 128 for the seventh wicket in Napier in early 1990, the Test in which the teenager tackled the great Richard Hadlee with aplomb before falling to Danny Morrison for a brilliant 88. More made 73, his highest Test score.
So full of admiration was More for his close friend that he often flew from Baroda to Mumbai to see Tendulkar play in Ranji Trophy matches.
“I was his team-mate in his first Test. I was there at the ground for his last Test. Those memories will never fade. Whenever he played in the Ranji Trophy in Mumbai, I used to fly from Baroda to Mumbai to watch him. For him to score those centuries even till the end of his career, you want to cherish them. Once, Sachin asked me why I came all the way from Baroda to watch him in the Ranji Trophy. My reply to him was ‘I come to see you, I don’t know how long I’d get to see you bat. Whatever I see, I can cherish those moments,” said More, who was India’s chief selector and also an assistant coach with Mumbai Indians.
And, what of those road trips with Tendulkar? More, whose academy in Baroda that has nurtured the Pandya brothers among others and which completed 27 years recently, said: “It’s fun being in his company. Listening to Marathi songs, Kishore Kumar songs and sharing jokes. We also play golf together.”
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