They have got the only Tendulkar perhaps money can buy: Aakash Chopra on MI buying Arjun in IPL 2021 auctions

IPL 2021: The pressure of being Sachin’s son could be a lot to handle for the 19-year-old Arjun Tendulkar and it remains to be seen how he copes with the expectations.

Arjun Tendulkar has been trending ever since Mumbai Indians decided to buy him at the 2021 Indian Premier League auctions. It was expected that the defending champions might go after the young seamer and that is what happened as MI picked him up with the final bid at the auctions on Thursday.

Aakash Chopra and Arjun Tendulkar. (Twitter)

Arjun is the son of legendary batsman Sachin Tendulkar and he always had the limelight on him since he started playing cricket at the domestic level. The pressure of being Sachin’s son could be a lot to handle for the 19-year-old and it remains to be seen how he copes with the expectations.

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There have been statements made that Arjun got his place in the side due to his father but those rumours have been squashed by former India batsman Aakash Chopra. He believes being a part of a successful franchise would further Arjun’s development.

“They have also got the only Tendulkar perhaps money can buy because the other Tendulkar never came at the auction. Arjun was available, they bought him,” Chopra told Star Sports.

“Of course, he can learn a lot from the house as well. He has a father who can teach him the ropes. But now he will be part of a very successful franchise with a lot of knowledge and wisdom around. So I am pretty sure he will benefit from that experience.

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“He has been also picking up wickets for Mumbai. It’s not that he has just been picked because his surname is Tendulkar. He has been doing something. Of course, Mumbai wanted him, they got him,” he added.

Mumbai Indians also bought Adam Milne, Nathan Coulter-Nile, Piyush Chawla, James Neesham, Yudhvir Charak, Marco Jansen during the auctions as they look to defend their title.