Sachin Tendulkar and his friend Vinod Kambli, on Thursday, paid emotional tributes to their childhood coach Ramakant Achrekar on his first death anniversary.
Taking to his official Twitter handle, Tendulkar tweeted in Marathi and English, “You will continue to remain in our hearts, Achrekar Sir!” The legendary batsman had also attached an old photo of him with his teacher.
तुमच्या आठवणी आमच्या मनात सदैव राहतील, आचरेकर सर.
You will continue to remain in our hearts, Achrekar Sir! pic.twitter.com/IFN0Z6EtAz
— Sachin Tendulkar (@sachin_rt) January 2, 2020
Kambli, on the other hand, posted an old picture of his family with Achrekar. He wrote, “No Mentor can ever be as incredible as you are because you did not only teach me to play cricket in the best way possible but you also taught me real life lessons. I miss you a lot, Achrekar Sir!”
No Mentor can ever be as incredible as you are because you did not only teach me to play cricket 🏏 in the best way possible but you also taught me real life lessons.
I miss you a lot, Achrekar Sir! pic.twitter.com/UVXKhZZEUo— VINOD KAMBLI (@vinodkambli349) January 2, 2020
Achrekar had died last year at the age of 87 due to age-related health issues. The late cricket coach was conferred with the Dronacharya Award in 1990 and Padma Shri, one of the country’s highest civilian awards in the sports category, in 2010.
Apart from Tendulkar and Kambli, Achrekar had also coached players like Pravin Amre, Ajit Agarkar and Ramesh Powar at his Shivaji Park academy in Mumbai’s Dadar.
After his demise in 2019, Tendulkar had given a heartfelt tribute to his coach, writing, “Cricket in heaven will be enriched with the presence of Achrekar sir.”
“Like many of his students, I learnt my ABCD of cricket under Sir’s guidance. His contribution to my life cannot be captured in words. He built the foundation that I stand on.
“Achrekar sir taught us the virtues of playing straight and living straight. Thank you for making us a part of your life and enriching us with your coaching manual. Well played Sir and may you coach more wherever you are,” he had added.