Lata to present golden bat to Tendulkar

Batting maestro Sachin Tendulkar will be presented a gold-plated bat by legendary singer Lata Mangeshkar at a function Thursday to commemorate his becoming the most capped Indian Test player and scoring 35 centuries - a world record.

"Lata Mangeshkar will present Tendulkar a gold plated bat. Basically, the function will have a tinge of Marathi culture," said a spokesman for Maratha Krira Patrakar which is organising the function at Yashwant Natya Mandir in Matunga here.

A highlight of the function, at which Tendulkar's family members will also be felicitated, will be an interview with Tendulkar's childhood friend Vinod Kambli, also a former India teammate of the master batsman.

Kambli will be answering questions on his long association with Tendulkar that started with their days at the Shardashram Vidya Mandir School, for which they raised a world-record 664-run partnership against St. Xavier's High School in the Harris Shield final in Mumbai in 1988.

"I will be there and will be interviewed on Sachin," Kambli, who visited the Wankhede Stadium to watch the fourth day's play of the third India-England third Test, told.

Another highlight of the function will be the narration of an especially composed poem by leading Marathi lyricist Sudhir Moghe. A poem composed by Tendulkar's late father will also be read out at the function.

Those who have played and studied with Tendulkar, along with all former Test players living in Mumbai, have been invited.

"Some of those who have studied with Tendulkar are into acting and drama. They will stage a 15-minute play at the function, the theme being the master batsman himself," the spokesman said.

Former India captain Ajit Wadekar will present a 'manav patra', scroll of honour, to the 32-year-old batsman who is playing a record 132nd Test, surpassing Kapil Dev's 131 matches.