Haseeb Hameed speaks about the time he met Sachin Tendulkar

19-year old England opener Haseeb Hameed has stated that he fell in love with cricket only after meeting Sachin Tendulkar in 2004. At the age of seven, Hameed ran into Sachin Tendulkar, someone he considered to be his true inspiration when he was a part of the MIG Cricket Club in Mumbai in 2004.

Hameed created history by becoming the fifth youngest players to play for England from the British Isles. Hameed’s family and ancestral roots tread back to Mumbai where his father was born and a place where the 19-year old also realized his first taste of cricket. Moreover, it was also here where Hameed realized his impressive cricketing acumen.

Of course, it is certainly not surprising that Hameed was a fan of Sachin Tendulkar. The 42-year old has set the perfect example for one and all in the country with his amazing batting acumen coupled with some impressive stats during his tenure as an Indian batsman. The England debutant was at the club to watch his elder brother Safwan but instead got to see the amount of crazy Tendulkar generated in India.

“There was a sea of people waiting to meet Sachin. That’s when Haseeb first got a feel of cricket and the passion for the game in India,” Safwan was quoted as saying by Hindustan Times. “That’s when he decided that cricket is going to be his future.”

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Going on the tour, England has been given little or no chance in the subcontinent conditions. Alastair Cook’s men were clearly troubled in the series against Bangladesh where spinners Mehedi Hasan and Shakib-al-Hasan were severe on the touring Britons.

However, Hameed did not play these matches and was resigned to a role on the bench. Ben Duckett was considered for the opening role instead. Now, Duckett has been pushed down the order in place of Gary Ballance who has been frozen out of the first Test at Rajkot.