Chennai: Arjun Tendulkar, son of former legendary batsman Sachin Tendulkar, will likely make his IPL debut in the upcoming season from defending champions Mumbai Indians. Arjun was bought by Mumbai for Rs 20 lakhs in the mini IPL auction on Thursday (February 18) in Chennai.
Jayawardene said the stint with Mumbai Indians will be a learning process for Arjun. After Arjun’s selection in the auction the former Sri Lanka skipper said that the decision to sign Tendulkar Jr. was purely ‘based on skill’ and he will learn and evolve his game with time.
“We have looked at it purely on a skills-basis. There is going to be a big tag on his head because of Sachin, but luckily he is a bowler, not a batsman, so I think Sachin will be very proud if he could bowl like Arjun,” Jayawardane said at a virtual interaction after the auction.
“It is going to be a learning process for Arjun. He has just started playing for Mumbai and now with the franchise, so he will learn the ropes. He will evolve, he is still young but a very focussed young man, so you have to give him some time and hopefully not put lot of pressure on him either. Just let him evolve and work his way up. That is what we are there to help him do,” he added.
The 21-year-old left-arm pacer recently made his senior Mumbai team debut when he played in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy against Haryana. He was also the Mumbai Indians net bowler during the IPL 2020 and was the last player to be bought in the IPL auction on Thursday.
Mumbai Indians (MI) Director of Cricket Operations, Zaheer Khan, stated that while Arjun will have to live with the fact that he is the son of the batting icon, he will have to prove himself to MI’s coaching staff.
“I have spent a lot of time with him in the nets, working alongside him, trying to teach him a few tricks of the trade and that has been going well. Like Mahela was mentioning, he is a hard-working kid and really keen on learning, so that is an exciting part,” Zaheer said.
Zaheer also said that Arjun is no stranger to carrying the tag of being Tendulkar’s son. “The added pressure is always going to be there and is something he will have to live with. The environment of the team will help him. It will help him become a good cricketer, how many times a youngster gets picked in the auction and everyone is talking about him.
“He is just a youngster coming in the side. He has to prove himself, he has to show all the coaching staff and the think-tank of the team that he is got the goods to belong there, so what he does there at the highest level, is in his hands.”
