Wankhede stand honour for Ravi Shastri turns into night of legends in Mumbai
Ravi Shastri hosted a celebratory bash in Mumbai, bringing together cricketing legends like Sunil Gavaskar, Allan Border, and Sachin Tendulkar. The event honored Shastri's stand being named at Wankhede Stadium, recognizing his significant contributions to Indian cricket. The gathering highlighted the camaraderie and respect among these iconic figures.
MUMBAI: On Wednesday night, in a rare instance, the first man to score 10,000 runs (Sunil Gavaskar), the first to score 11,000 runs (Allan Border) and the first to score 12,000 and the only one to score 15,000 runs (Sachin Tendulkar) in Test cricket all came together for a special celebration. The occasion, truly memorable, was Ravi Shastri's lavish bash in a five-star hotel in Mumbai on Wednesday night, to celebrate the naming of a stand at the Wankhede Stadium. The party had all the ingredients that one would expect from the former India allrounder-turned commentator, who was also the Team India coach-top cricket stars, free flowing alcohol and some delicuis food.
On April 9, the Mumbai Cricket Association, in a glittering ceremony, had named a stand at the Wankhede Stadium, fittingly below the commentators' box, after Shastri, while naming the gates of the stadium after Indian cricket's 70s heroes Dilip Sardesai and Eknath Solkar and ex-India women's team captain Diana Edulji. In a short, emotional speech during the party, which was obviously celebrated in a ‘high spirit’ considering the inimitable personality of the host, Shastri, with his mother Lakshmi Shastri, wife Ritu Singh, daughter Aleka, said, “I value everyone's presence here. I might have known some people here for 40 years, 30, 20 years, they have all played a part in my journey.
My mother (Lakshmi), wife (Ritu Singh) and daughter (Aleka) are here. ” Asserting on the pedigree of the great cricketers who have a stand named after them at the Wankhede Stadium, Shastri said, “You've got to work your backside off to get there (having a stand named after you at the Wankhede Stadium). I've got colleagues here who are already there.
And three of them are there tonight. So before I join the gang, let me take their names. Sunil Manohar Gavaskar.