Bombay delays naming pavilion after Tendulkar

Bombay has put on hold plans to name a pavilion at the Wankhede Stadium after Indian batsman Sachin Tendulkar, a Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA) official said on Wednesday.

The association had announced last week it would name the stadium's clubhouse, called the "MCA pavilion", after Tendulkar on May 23.

MCA joint secretary Ratnakar Shetty told Reuters the organisation had postponed the decision because Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) vice-president Kamal Morarka, who has donated money for the pavilion, was abroad.

"Legally we are under contract and don't want to rename the stand till he's back," Shetty said

Shetty dismissed local media reports that Morarka had objected to the MCA proposal.

"We just want to wait for Morarka to come back. He has already spoken to MCA president Sharad Pawar. We will go ahead with the plan at a later date," he said.

The association decided to rename the pavilion after Tendulkar, 28, was awarded the Maharashtra Bhushan, the highest government award in Maharashta.

The MCA had dropped an earlier move to name the stadium's northern stand after Tendulkar because it was already named after the Tatas, a leading industrial house that has a 50-year contract with the association.

Tendulkar, widely regarded as the world's best batsman, became the first player to score 10,000 runs in one-day internationals during the recent home series against Australia.

Mail Cricket Editor