Sachin Tendulkar on Monday came face to face with himself, as a new waxwork figure of the Indian cricket legend was unveiled in his home city of Mumbai after demand from the public. The figure has been made to go on show at London's Madame Tussauds museum and is the first of an Indian sportsman at the world famous waxwork attraction.It shows Tendulkar, 35, in a familiar pose -- in full whites of the India team, batting pads, arm guard and gloves, holding his bat and helmet aloft in celebration. "This was the way I celebrated when I passed the record," he told a news conference, referring to the moment last October when he broke Brian Lara's record for the most runs in Test cricket. "I saw the picture and it was a special moment, a very dear one to me."
Tendulkar, nicknamed the "Little Master" or "Master Blaster," described being immortalised in wax as a "great honour." "It's fantastic, fabulous," he added. Liz Edwards, from Madame Tussauds, said it was the first time one of its wax figures had been launched outside London and had been designed to coincide with the start of the Indian Premier League Twenty20 tournament this weekend.
Tendulkar captains the Mumbai Indians in the competition, which has been moved to South Africa because of a clash with India's general election. "Guests vote for wax figures to come in. Sachin's name was constantly coming up and we were delighted to work with him," said Edwards.