Freedom & encouragement a great combination that leads to results: Sachin Tendulkar

As a piece of advice to the youngsters, Tendulkar said, “Let the journey not begin from your brain. Because passion lives in your heart. So let the journey of cricket, or any other sport, start from the heart. Don’t expect results overnight.” He also urged parents to be patient. “Failure is a foundation – As long as you are patiently teaching them and explaining to them… Every batter gets bowled and every bowler gives runs. That is normal. So don’t treat failure like ‘what have you done’? Nobody wants to fail in life. So the children are not going there to fail. They all want to perform. You can show them balance because the way you react to their performances, even if they perform well, don’t get carried away. There should be a balance. It will just prepare them to deal with tough times and also teach them to celebrate their victories and not take anything for granted.

While he encouraged young athletes to embrace discipline, patience and the joy of learning through sports, he added, “What I’m trying to tell all the children here is… every time you will play, you not be successful but every time we can go prepared. Success is never guaranteed. But your preparation, and your discipline, focus – all these are in your hands. Talent, I believe, is God-given. But what you do with that talent is in your hands. I have seen many talented cricketers, but the results were not as good. There should be focus. If you want to play for India, you will have to do certain things. There are no shortcuts. And if you take shortcuts you will get exposed in front of the entire world because cricket, is always played on the field in front of everyone. So don’t take shortcuts.”

The SRT10 Altevol Sports Academy was launched earlier this year as part of the expanding SRT10 ecosystem aimed at strengthening grassroots sports development through professional coaching, fitness infrastructure and holistic athlete training programmes. This is the second such academy in India backed by Sachin Tendulkar after the flagship SRT10 Global Academy at DY Patil Sports Academy in Navi Mumbai.

Chirag Patel, CEO, SRT10 Altevol Centre of Excellence, said, “Sharing the field with Sachin Tendulkar gave the young dreamers a real sense of belief and purpose. His presence brought alive the values this academy stands for: humility, hard work, discipline and commitment to constant improvement.”

Patel added that Tendulkar’s visit also underlined the growing importance of structured sporting ecosystems in emerging urban centres such as Ahmedabad, where increasing access to world-class training and mentorship is helping shape a stronger culture of grassroots sport.