Indian cricket fans have a special connection with the jersey number 10 which was the number legendary Sachin Tendulkar used to wore during his playing days.
When the Master Blaster retired from cricket, it was stated that the jersey number would stay off the field with him. Perhaps it was done by his IPL franchise Mumbai Indians as a mark of tribute to the stalwart. But why did the debutant Shardul Thakur wore the jersey with the same number in the 4th ODI against Sri Lanka?
The young lad straight away faced the heat of fans on Twitter when Team India took the field to defend the 375 runs total on Thursday evening.
@BCCI Jersey no 10 belongs to one and only @sachin_rt
We cant accept anyone wearing that Jersey no.. pic.twitter.com/ybb4oqzpBb— Akshaya (@akshusachinist) August 31, 2017
@BCCI please retire Jersey no. 10 from ODI cricket,we don't want anyone else other than @sachin_rt to wear the same number.
— Dhairyasheel Patil (@AProudSachinist) August 31, 2017
@imShard Jersey no. 10 always belonged to Sachin Tendulkar. Take it off. Find another jersey. Wtf BCCI?!
— Vinitha Nair (@94vinitha) August 31, 2017
Shardul himself revealed the reason
While he was facing criticism from Sachin’s die hard fans, it was natural for him being asked the question after the match. In the post-match interaction with former Indian cricketer Murali Karthik, Shardul said, “My birth date’s sum total is 10 which is why I chose the number for my jersey as well.”
