Former India batsman Wasim Jaffer recalled his days under the sun even before playing Ranji Trophy for Mumbai when watching "wonder boy" Sachin Tendulkar take his first steps towards greatness was a huge inspiration.
Jaffer reminisced of a game from school cricket in Mumbai where Bandra Urdu high-school was taking on Shardashram, which Tendulkar played for.
"Before the Ranji Trophy, I played a couple of times against him. When I was in Bandra Urdu high-school, we had a pre-quarter final game against Shardashram, the team Sachin played for. He only batted one day and scored 170 odd runs. He didn’t even field and went to play Ranji Trophy cricket," Jaffer, five years younger than Tendulkar, told CricTracker in an interview.
"When I was around 13 and 14 years and studied in the seventh standard, we used to go and watch him play. That’s how I go to know about him. He was a wonder-boy back then and was destined to become a great name for Mumbai and Indian cricket. He lived up to all his potential."
Another Mumbai stalwart and India batsman Jaffer talked about is Sanjay Manjrekar, famous these days as a broadcaster. Jaffer said he thought of Manjrekar, son of the late Vijay Manjrekar and his first Mumbai captain, as a very "critical person", who eventually "mellowed down" with time.
"Sanjay Manjrekar was my first skipper and on my debut, we opened the innings together. He was available since he was dropped from the Indian team. And Manjrekar wanted to make his India comeback as an opener and hence, he decided to open the batting. We also went on to win the Ranji Trophy that season. I was fortunate enough to have shared the dressing room with him," he said.
"He was a strong character and he doesn’t budge to outside chaos. A number of players have said that he has strong opinions, very critical at times. But towards the end of his career, he mellowed down."
"When you play for a team like Mumbai, you learn so much. Apart from Sachin, Vinod and Sanjay, there are so many great Ranji cricketers, stars and match-winners in their own rights," Jaffer added.
Jaffer, himself a Mumbai and Indian domestic cricket legend with over 19,000 first-class runs at an average of 50.67, represented India in 31 Test matches.
"I’m very fortunate that god gave the talent, without which I wouldn’t have come this far. My parents and brothers have sacrificed a lot and I owe my success to them. I was lucky to play for a team like Mumbai," he said.
"I watched Sachin Tendulkar, Vinod Kambli and Sanjay Manjrekar, who all were my role models as I learned a lot from them. The atmosphere and competition made the cricketer I became."
"Then I moved to Vidarbha, had my share of injuries and lot of people remember me for being a successful first-class cricketer and not an international cricketer."
"I’m proud of playing 30 odd Test matches (31) for India. Though I could’ve done much better, the journey was incredible," Jaffer concluded.
