Sachin Tendulkar, the former India batsman, said the vision behind the Tendulkar Middlesex Global Academy was to promote sport – not just cricket – across the globe.
“The vision is not just to have cricket academies, but along with cricket we want to promote other sports,” he is quoted as saying by Reuters. “We want to build clubs all across the world. Clubs where you will have tennis courts, badminton courts, squash, table tennis, swimming pools, billiards… We want to promote sport across the world.
A small step towards a big dream, “Tendulkar Middlesex Global Academy”, for all the young girls & boys to play & learn from top cricketing minds. Excited to be partnering with @Middlesex_CCC. @tendulkarmga
Full info: https://t.co/tQnDaEFPwz
Launch camp: https://t.co/WgEAEau63M pic.twitter.com/e6d5HA6G8N— Sachin Tendulkar (@sachin_rt) July 18, 2018
“That’s why there is no ‘cricket’ in the name of the academy. I would say (it is a) global sports centre. That is what the vision is.”
The academy will be launched next month at Merchant Taylor’s School in Northwood, and it will provide training for children between the age of nine and 14.
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The former India batsman also revealed why he signed the deal with Middlesex, despite there being other interested parties. “Along the way there were many guys who approached me but I was not convinced with what they wanted to do,” he said.
“If we are to do something for young cricketers then we have to be on the same page, the vision has to align. With Middlesex, that was the case.”
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The academy will provide training for children between the age group of nine and 14.[/caption]
Tendulkar, who finished his glorious 24-year career with 34,357 international runs and 100 international centuries, added that his academy also aimed to spread cricket to “as many countries as possible.”
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“It will be in India, England and other parts of the world,” he explained. “It’s not necessarily just the cricket playing nations.
“There are number of nations where there is interest in cricket but they do not have access to proper facilities. The vision is to spread cricket to as many countries as possible.”
