Tendulkar progresses well in fitness

Sachin Tendulkar is one step closer to getting fit. He had a long batting session on Thursday at the Bandra Kurla cricket stadium where Mumbai Indians assembled for nets ahead of their clash against Delhi Daredevils at home on Sunday. Lalchand Rajput, the Mumbai coach, later said Tendulkar, who is recovering from a groin injury, looked good while batting and was hopeful his captain would be back soon. "He looked very good, had a long batting session and looked alright," Rajput said but would not commit if his seniormost player would make his IPL debut. "There are still two days to go before the next match. We will take the final call on May 4 (Sunday) morning. Hopefully he gets better in that time." Mumbai had a dismal start to their campaign after three straight losses but clinched their maiden victory, on Tuesday evening, against Kolkata Knight Riders in a rousing fashion at the Eden Gardens. Dwayne Bravo, who starred in the seven-wicket victory with a handsome contribution of 64 not out, was a proud man today but said he was inspired by Tendulkar, the non-playing captain. Bravo pointed out a fine example when Mumbai were struggling at 25 for 3 chasing the target of 138 set by Kolkata. "In the meeting before the Kolkata match he told everybody that whenever you go in to bat with the back against the wall use it as an opportunity to be a hero," Bravo said. "That stuck in my head. When I walked in Mumbai were 25 for 3, and that small thing Sachin said helped me a lot." According to Bravo, Tendulkar, just by his presence, helps the team-mates gather a lot of confidence. "He always talks about being positive and staying calm and not let the situation get the better of you", Bravo said. Even if Tendulkar has missed all the matches so far, Bravo felt the important thing was he was always sharing his thoughts and opinions in the dressing room. And that proved to be a catalyst in not letting the team atmosphere deteriorate during the difficult times. "Although he has not played a game, yet, he voices his opinion on the team, the individual and issues like batting and bowling," Bravo said. "Mumbai is a young side and his presence gives you a lot of confidence. When he speaks we listen and execute his plan." Bravo - who also grew up in Brian Lara's hometown, Santa Cruz, Trinidad - says even Lara, Bravo's hero, looked up to Tendulkar during his playing days. "I grew up in the same village as Brian Lara. Lara is my hero and even he too looks up to Tendulkar. He always talks about him." According to Bravo, just observing the way the two legends, with whom he has been "fortunate" to share the dressing room with, is itself a big learning lesson. "Both Lara and Tendulkar have a lot of knowledge. You learn so much by just watching how they move around, how they speak and how they treat their cricketing gear, especially the bat."

Mumbai Indians rope in Hrithik Roshan as brand ambassador

The Sachin Tendulkar-led Mumbai Indians have roped in Bollywood star Hrithik Roshan as their brand ambassador to drum up support for the team in the Indian Premeir League starting on April 18.”Hrithik symbolises the spirit of the team,” said R Balachandran, director of the newly formed Indiawin Sports — a subsidiary of Reliance Industries which owns the franchise outfit, at a media conference to outline the team’s marketing campaign. The actor is figuring in a promotional video campaign to muster support for the team through a Hindi song “Duniya Hila Denge Hum (Let’s rock the world)”. The franchisee also announced the ticket prices for the first two matches that the team plays at the Wankhede Stadium here and D Y Patil Stadium in Nerul, Navi Mumbai, on April 20 and 27 respectively. “The ticket price ranges from Rs 250-500 to the upper end Rs 3000-5000 for the first match while for the second match it ranges from Rs 200-400 to Rs 1000,” he added.

I am excited to play with Sachin : Jayasuria

Former Sri Lankan opener Sanath Jayasuriya is looking forward to play with Sachin Tendulkar in the upcoming Indian Premier League Twenty20, starting here on Sunday. “I am very happy I will play with Sachin Tendulkar. Besides I will get an opportunity to start the innings with him,” said Sri Lanka’s former skipper with a chuckle to the media persons here on Wednesday. After a long pratice session at Bandra Kurla Complex facility, he said, “I got the first opportunity to play with Sachin during a charity match in England. Now IPL has given another opportunity to play with him.” When asked about how he felt playing with youngsters at the age of 38, Jayasuriya shot back,” I do not think so. I am still a young player both on and off the field.” The Lankan hero said his team Mumbai Indians was all prepared for the IPL. “We know our strengths and weaknesses. We are also preparing to counter the opponents in every match. We will try to keep Mumbai flag high,” he said

Mumbai Indians

Mumbai Indians Owner: Reliance Industries Ltd Franchise fee: $111.9 million Most expensive player: Sachin Tendulkar - $1,121,250 Captain: Sachin Tendulkar Coach: Lalchand Rajput Players : Sachin Tendulkar Sanath Jayasuriya Robin Uthappa Lasith Malinga Abhishek Nayar Dilhara Fernando Harbhajan Singh Ashish Nehra Dominic Thornely Musavir Khote, Dhawal Kulkarni Manish Pandey Rajesh Pawar Shaun Pollock Saurabh Tiwary Ashwell Prince, Ajinkya Rahane, Rohan Raje, Luke Ronchi(wk) Pinal Shah (wk) Swapnil Singh Y Vijay Takawale Vikrant Yeligati Loots Bosman Ankeet Chavan Siddharth Chitnis Gaurav Dhiman