Batting legend Sachin Tendulkar on Friday stated that managing the time period after 14 April would indeed be crucial to know whether India indeed manages to succeed in its battle against COVID-19 pandemic. The same belief was shared by Prime Minister Narendra Modi when he was interacting with some of the top sportspersons in the country via video conferencing.
Notably, Tendulkar was one among the 40 elite sports personalities with whom PM Modi had scheduled an hour-long video call to discuss the pandemic situation in the country. The dreaded virus has already infected over 2000 people in the country and claimed over 50 lives.
“He (PM Modi) highlighted and reaffirmed my belief that we should not let our guard down after the 14th of April, & how we manage that period will be very critical,” Tendulkar said in a statement as quoted by PTI.
“I also suggested that as much as possible, I will use our way of greeting – saying ‘Namaste’ instead of shaking hands, even after we overcome this pandemic,” he said.
“Taking care of our elders who are most vulnerable and using this time to hear from them, their stories and experiences was something the Prime Minister resonated with,” the Bharat Ratna Awardee mentioned.
“We also spoke about mental fitness being as important as physical fitness during this phase, and shared what I’m doing at home to keep fit,” he added.
“This is the time for our entire nation to come together and keep each other motivated. Like team spirit wins us games in sports, our nation should work as one team to overcome this,” Tendulkar concluded.