Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma welcomed cricketing legend Sunil Gavaskar at his office in Lok Sewa Bhawan in Guwahati on Saturday to discuss strengthening the state's cricketing ecosystem. Gavaskar proposed organising an International Marathon in Guwahati on the lines of the Tokyo Marathon '25, and Sarma responded positively, stating that the government would examine the proposal.
Childhood Memories and Cricket Evolution
During the meeting, Sarma shared his childhood memories of watching Gavaskar's masterclass innings. He posted on X: "Shri Sunil Gavaskar ji met me & proposed to organise an International Marathon in Guwahati on the lines of the Tokyo Marathon'25. We will be glad to host it & will definitely examine it. Like many of my generation, I also shared with him my childhood memories of those SUNNY knocks!"
The discussions also covered the evolution of cricket across red-ball and white-ball formats, as well as a roadmap for further strengthening cricket in Assam.
Insights from the Legend
Sarma observed that Gavaskar's invaluable insights and wealth of experience would serve as a guiding light in the government's efforts to nurture quality cricketing talent and develop the sport in the state. Secretary of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), Devajit Saikia, and Additional Chief Secretary to the Chief Minister, KK Dwivedi, were also present during the interaction.
Sunil Gavaskar played 125 Tests and 108 ODIs, amassing 10,122 Test runs at an average of 51.12 with 34 centuries and 3,092 ODI runs at an average of 35.13. He famously became the first batsman to score 10,000 runs and 34 hundreds in Test cricket.
