“Saeed bhai, you are not supposed to play too seriously” – Saeed Ajmal recalls what Sachin Tendulkar told him during a charity match


“Saeed bhai, you are not supposed to play too seriously” – Saeed Ajmal recalls what Sachin Tendulkar told him during a charity match

Sachin Tendulkar and Saeed Ajmal

Former Pakistani spinner Saeed Ajmal who was among the most wily in the world at his peak recalled recently an interaction that he had with Indian cricketing icon Sachin Tendulkar during a charity match that was played in 2014 between Rest of World XI and Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC). Some of the biggest legends of the game took part in the match such as Sachin, Brian Lara, Rahul Dravid, Shane Warne, Virender Sehwag, Adam Gilchrist, Shahid Afridi, Yuvraj Singh, Kevin Pietersen among others.

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Rest of World batted first but were pegged back by Saeed Ajmal who picked up four quick wickets to rock the side. However, Yuvraj Singh hit a century to take the score to 293/7. MCC chased down the total thanks to Aaron Finch‘s 181 runs as they cruised home in less than 46 overs.

Saeed Ajmal reveals what Sachin Tendulkar told him

Saeed Ajmal
Saeed Ajmal

Saeed Ajmal spoke to Cricket Pakistan‘s YouTube channel about the match and what Sachin Tendulkar told him after he picked up four wickets, saying, “It was an MCC match. It’s supposed to be a friendly match. The players are required to spend some time in the middle because the longer the game goes on, the more funds will be collected. When the match started, I picked up four wickets in four overs.”

“So, Sachin Tendulkar came running to me and he said, ‘Saeed bhai, you are not supposed to play this match too seriously. This is a charity match. This is for the people who have come here to enjoy, they will have food, drinks. This match has to not get over before 6:30’,” he added.

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“So I told him I was just bowling well to play in a positive way. So he said that ‘I agree with you, but this is a charity match, so funds have to be collected. So enjoy the match, play cricket and have fun’. So that’s what happened,” Ajmal further said.

Sachin Tendulkar’s advice seemed to have worked in fact as Rest of World went on to play their full quota of 50 overs.

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