No IPL parties…that’s how I am: Tendulkar

The ace cricketer,in the city to lay the foundation stone of the superspecialty building of the Deenanath Mangeshkar Hospital,looked his casual best in a pair of blue denims and white shirt as he shared the dais with Bharat Ratna Lata Mangeshkar,Pt Hridaynath Mangeshkar and the medical director of the hospital,Dr Dhananjay Kelkar.

Tendulkar said tournaments like the IPL might have increased popularity of the shorter version of the game,but test cricket would never fade from the scene.

Speaking on recently helping Dalbir Singh,with whom he played under-15 tournaments,by bearing the cost of his surgery,Tendulkar said,“I don’t do this for attention or adulation,but for the satisfaction that comes from helping someone.” He said he had always been involved in charitable activities but it was only recently that they were coming to the open.

Asked whether he would ever be part of the newly formed Pune IPL team,he said he hadn’t given it a thought. “Who knows what will happen in future? For me,it’s always the game. It was so when I started playing and it is today.”

Talking on being game-fit,Tendulkar said mental fitness was as important as physical agility. “This was the major reason I decided to quit T20 in 2007,as I did not feel I was up to the rigours of the game then,” he said.

Lata Mangeshkar was all praise for Tendulkar. “He is like a younger brother. I haven’t met him a lot but whenever we do,I always speak to him about the game and his enthusiasm for the same keeps growing with every match. I must confess,whenever I sit down to watch him play,I lose track of time. He is a Vishwa Ratna.”

Sachin praised Lata for the innumerable songs,all equally excellent,she had rendered making it tough to choose one as a favourite. But Tendulkar feels he can rate Aye Mere Watan Ke Logo as a favourite.

He also appreciated the work done by doctors at the hospital saying sportspersons just entertain people but doctors do a bigger job of saving lives.

The hospital building will be 18 storeys spread in area of 6,00,000 sq ft and cost Rs 110 crore. The hospital will feature nuclear medicine,liver transplant,cardiology and cardiothoracic surgery,neurology and neurosurgery departments,plastic and cosmetic surgery,sports injuries and sport medicine,oncosurgery and laser surgery and urology and urosurgery departments.