Special coin to be minted for toss before Tendulkar's 200th Test
After MS Dhoni and Darren Sammy walk out for the toss in Sachin Tendulkar’s 200th and farewell Test at the Wankhede on November 14, a freshly minted coin will be spun to determine who bats/bowls first.
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Prof Ratnakar Shetty, General Manager Game’s Development of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), revealed to MiD DAY that the coin is amongst many plans to celebrate the Little Master’s feat. “On one side of the coin, we will have Tendulkar’s portrait and on the other, we will have a logo. It will either be the BCCI’s or the MCA’s logo,” Shetty said.
BCCI president N Srinivasan will felicitate Tendulkar before the start of the Test while a grand felicitation function by the Board will be organised after the match. “We want to keep the focus on the Test match. Tendulkar’s felicitation will take place like it was done for Rahul Dravid,” Shetty informed.
SRT’s suggestions to improve attendance
Attendance at Test centres across the country has been a matter of concern and Shetty said the maestro has some suggestions to improve things in this regard. “He has suggested getting more school children for Tests. The other is to have various contests for spectators during the day. “One of them could be to reward the best banner or placard. The winner could then get a chance to meet an Indian cricketer after the day’s play. He has also suggested that the television team have interactions with fans during breaks,” said Shetty.
MCA to seek BMC’s permission
The Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA) meanwhile, will write to the Brihanmumbai Corporation (BMC) seeking permission to name their Kandivli facility after Sachin Tendulkar.u00a0It is learnt that the BMC has objected to MCA’s decision to name the clubhouse after the legendary cricketer without their permission. A source said: “BMC has said that since it is their plot they have the right to name it. The BMC has to allow MCA to name the Kandivli
clubhouse after Tendulkar.”u00a0Dr PV Shetty, MCA’s Joint Secretary, told MiD DAY that proper procedure would be followed. “We will write to the BMC as per their instructions. It will be done step by step as per procedure,” he said.u00a0
No box office sale of tickets
The MCA has decided to follow the procedures of the 2011 World Cup final with regards to sale of tickets for Tendulkar’s 200th Test from November 14-18 at the Wankhede. The MCA will not have any box office sale of tickets considering the huge demand for the landmark match. “Tickets would be sold online only. Looking at the demand for tickets, we don’t want any issues with crowd management,” MCA Joint Secretary Nitin Dalal said.u00a0The online agency for ticket sales has not been finalised.u00a0