Cricket fans are set to get one more chance to see legends Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid, Shaun Pollock and Shane Warne in action at Lord’s after they were confirmed Wednesday for a match marking the ground’s 200th anniversary.
London: Retired batting icon Sachin Tendulkar will be seen in cricketing gears once again when he leads the MCC team against Shane Warne-led Rest of the World side at the Lord’s in a one-day game on July 5 to mark the bicentenary celebrations of the historic club.
Tendulkar, who was awarded Honorary Member of MCC in 2010, will lead a side that will also have another Indian batting great Rahul Dravid in his side.
Former Indian captain Sunil Gavaskar also played a competitive game after his Test retirement, where he scored a fabulous 188 for Rest of the World against MCC in a bicentenary Test match at Lord’s back in 1987.
The famous Tendulkar vs Warne rivalry will be renewed for a day as the Aussie legend leads a team that will also have former South African captain Shaun Pollock in its ranks.
This is the second time Tendulkar will appear at Lord’s in such a fixture, having captained the Rest of the World side – scoring a majestic century in the process – in the Lady Diana Memorial Match in 1998.
Tendulkar said he was looking forward to the July fixture.”It is an honour to be asked to captain MCC in such a prestigious fixture, and I am delighted to accept,” Tendulkar explained in a MCC statement.
“Lord’s is such a special place to play cricket and I am very much looking forward to helping celebrate its bicentenary by taking part in this match.
“I was delighted to be presented with an MCC Honorary Life Membership in 2010, and it will be a privilege to play at the ‘home of cricket’ once again.”
Warne, who took 19 wickets in four Tests at Lord’s, on his part also sounded excited, to be playing the festival fixture. “I always enjoy playing at Lord’s and as an Honourary Life Member of MCC I’m really excited about coming back,” Warne said in the statement.
“I’m sure the match will be a lot of fun and it will be a pleasure to be part of the bicentenary celebrations of the most famous cricket ground in the world,” he added.
Meanwhile MCC president Mike Gatting promised “more big names in the coming weeks”.
As a player, former England captain Gatting was involved in a similar, star-studded, match in 1987 when he scored 179 for MCC against the Rest of the World in a five-day fixture marking the 200th anniversary of the club.
Gatting, who played and later coached Lord’s-based county side Middlesex, has also worked at the ground recently in his role as an administrator with the England and Wales Cricket Board.
“This great ground has been my home from home for the last 40 years and it means a great deal to be personally involved in the celebration of its bicentenary year,” the 56-year-old said.
MCC, founded in 1787, moved to its present site in the north-west London suburb of St John’s Wood in 1814, with the ground owned by entrepreneur Thomas Lord — hence its name.
Although it is more than 40 years since MCC ceased to run English cricket, it retains worldwide responsibility for the game’s ‘Laws’, as cricket’s rules are known.
