Known for his penchant for sports cars, Sachin Tendulkar has said during his earlier playing days he used to clean his cars to divert his attention from cricket.
The highest run scorer in international cricket, Tendulkar, who retired from one-day international recently, said he used to find it "relaxing" to wash his cars.
"Not that often that I clean my cars nowadays. It was back then when I had a little more time. Those days I used to shampoo and wax the cars myself, because I cared about my cars. I find that relaxing," the veteran batsman said at the Bloomberg TV Autocar India Awards 2013 last night.
"I have got some friends who are as crazy about cars as I am. It was more to take my mind off cricket and relax," he said adding that some players seek his advice on cars.
Taking a walk own the memory lane, Tendulkar recollected his childhood days, when he dreamed about owning his four-wheeler.
"My passion for cars started when I was 8-9 years old.
Living in Bandra, just behind our building there was a huge open air drive-in theatre and all the big cars used to come there and park. Those days it was Fiats and Ambassadors or an occasional Contessa or Standard 2000. That was the time when I used to stand in the balcony and tell myself that one day I should have a car of my own," he said.
Tendulkar said he has to lie to his wife Anjali about the specifications of the car while deciding to buy it.
"I have to tell her it's a four-door family car. I am talking about the M5 (BMW M5-series). I tell her it is not that fast. It has got good suspension. The kids would really enjoy. It has got a couple of screens at the back, so they can watch whatever they want to. I have never really mentioned 500bhp or whatever. I hide it," he said.
A follower of motorsports, the 39-year old said that he has had sleepless nights before an F1 game.
"I keep myself updated through magazines. I watch auto programmes and F1 races. I have had sleepless nights before watching a formula 1 game. I have always admired good cars," he said.
On what he likes in a car, "I like acceleration. I want a car to speak to my heart. When a car speaks to your heart, it keeps growing on you, which is fantastic. You start taking care of your car. That is when you start shampooing and waxing your car."
