Rohit Sharma and his parents unveil a stand in his name at Wankhede Stadium

Rohit Sharma (left) is all smiles as his parents along with Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis (fourth from right) unveil a stand named after him at the Wankhede yesterday. Pics/Sayyed Sameer Abedi

India's ODI captain Rohit Sharma, who recently retired from Test cricket, was overwhelmed when he witnessed a stand with his name being unveiled at the Wankhede Stadium on Friday evening.

During its April 15 Annual General Meeting, the Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA) approved the proposals to name the Divecha Pavilion Level 3 Stand as Rohit Sharma Stand, Grand Stand Level 3 as Sharad Pawar Stand, Grand Stand Level 4 as Ajit Wadekar Stand and MCA Office Lounge in memory of late president Amol Kale (who passed away last June). They inaugurated these stands in the presence of Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and former MCA, BCCI and ICC chief Sharad Pawar.

The Rohit Sharma Stand at the Wankhede Stadium

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After his speech, Rohit immediately stepped down from the dais to bring his dad Gurunath, mother Purnima and wife Ritika to the stage and inaugurated his own stand. Rohit, 38, who has scored 11,168 runs in 273 ODIs so far, which includes 32 centuries, is looking forward to representing the country in 50-over cricket at his home ground soon.

‘Surreal feeling'

"The honour, while I'm still playing, makes it very, very special. I've retired from two formats, but I'm still playing one format [ODI]. It will be a surreal feeling on May 21 when I come here to play against Delhi Capitals, representing Mumbai Indians and to have a stand [in my name], it will be very special," Rohit said while addressing the gathering which included former India captains Dilip Vengsarkar, Ravi Shastri, Diana Edulji and the entire Mumbai Indians team.

"It will be even more special while representing the country [in ODIs] here. And to have this big honour [a stand in my name at Wankhede] in front of so many people, and especially my family, my mom and dad, my brother, his wife and my wife, who are present here as well… To have a stand named after me at this iconic venue is overwhelming. It is a tribute to the dreams, support, and milestones that have shaped my journey and I am deeply thankful to the MCA for this honour," Rohit added.

Former India captain Wadekar, who passed away in 2018 at the age of 77, represented the country in 37 Tests and two ODIs from 1966 to 1974. Wadekar's wife Rekha, who attended the function along with her family, said: "I've been waiting for this moment for a long time. The man who brought glory to Mumbai and Indian cricket has been honoured after a long wait. However, now, there is a stand in his name and that too at the Grand Stand level. So, I'm grateful to the MCA for giving him that honour."

CM assures new stadium

Meanwhile, during his speech, chief guest Fadnavis assured MCA president Ajinkya Naik a land to build a new cricket stadium of 1 lakh capacity. "Last time, [ex-MCA president] Amol Kale and [then MCA secretary] Ajinkya Naik had come to me with a request that the MCA needed to build one more cricket stadium with minimum 1,00,000-crowd capacity. And now, today, I'm assuring Ajinkya ji that if you come with a proposal, then the Maharashtra government will give you a good piece of land for the MCA to build its own big cricket stadium," Fadnavis said.

MCA's century coming up

Four years from now, the MCA will be completing 100 years of existence, and by then, the association is aiming to have a new big stadium. Acknowledging the CM's assurance, MCA chief Naik said: "He [Fadnavis] very much wants to do it [build new stadium]. He's a person with a progressive, positive mindset. We have already applied for a place at Amne in Thane district. There's a chance we may get a place somewhere else too."