Mumbai Indians back Arjun Tendulkar to develop after buying him at IPL auctions

Sachin Tendulkar's son, a young left-arm pacer, was bought by the league champions for his base price of Rs20 lakh.

As soon as Arjun Tendulkar’s name popped up, the camera cut to the Mumbai Indians’ table. As expected, Zaheer Khan, without any hesitation put his hand up to bring the junior Tendulkar to their roster at his base price of ₹20 lakh.

File image of Arjun Tendulkar. (BCCI)

Arjun was the last player to be auctioned. It makes the Tendulkars the first father-son duo to be part of the IPL. Sachin played for MI for six seasons and after that moved into a mentor role for the five-time champions and is now an icon for the franchise.

Arjun made his debut for Mumbai during last month’s Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. He figured in two matches during the tournament, picking a single wicket in each match. The 21-year-old left-arm pacer is also a capable lower-order bat.

Coincidently, Arjun made his domestic debut against Haryana against whom Tendulkar played his last domestic match in October 2013.

Arjun, who has come up the ranks, has represented Mumbai in different age groups since his under-14 days. He was also part of the India under-19 team that toured Sri Lanka in 2018. Arjun is also a regular at the Mumbai Indians’ nets, learning the tricks of the trade from the likes of Shane Bond and Zaheer Khan while doing net bowling duties. He had travelled with the team to the UAE for last year's IPL.

The MI think-thank was happy to have him on board. "He is going to have a tag on his head because of Sachin but luckily he is a bowler and not a batsman... It’s going to be a learning process for Arjun. We have to give him some time and hopefully not put lot of pressure on him, to work his way up. That’s what we are there to help him do,” said MI head coach Mahela Jayawardene.

MI owner Akash Ambani felt his progress should be like any other cricketer. “It’s very important that his progression happens as any other young cricketer’s. Fortunately, at MI we help individuals reach their potential. It’s all on their hard work but we believe we have the environment to do that. Hopefully, we can see Arjun reach his potential in coming years as many other youngsters, without taking names, have," said Ambani.

Zaheer, MI’s director of cricket operations, said he had spent time with Arjun--a left-arm pace like the former India star-- over the last couple of years in the MI nets. “The added pressure of the name Tendulkar is always going to be there on him, something which he will have to live with. But we are very hopeful that the environment which we have around the team is going to help him. (In the end) he is just a youngster coming into the side. He has to prove himself, show all the coaching staff and the think-tank of the team that he has got the goods to belong there. So, what he does at the highest level is in his hands.”