Mumbai, July 18: Did he or didn’t he? It may no longer be a question linked to Vinod Kambli and Sachin Tendulkar. The answer is now out in the public domain.
A television channel has beamed the footage showing a sobbing Kambli saying Tendulkar could have helped him with a little bit of motivation in his hour of crisis. Kambli was responding to a question if his illustrious friend could have helped him more in the much-talked about reality show.
But that is not the final word. It is rather that the “truth” has left no bad blood between the two childhood buddies. After all the hullabaloo over the show, the news is that the two friends have sorted things out. If the sources are to be believed, Tendulkar and Kambli have spoken to each other and brushed the whole issue aside.
Tendulkar was not in India when the news about Kambli’s “confessions” broke. Tendulkar reached Mumbai a couple of days back. Kambli is believed to have met him.
That is not all. The two friends will fly down to Nagpur on Saturday and share the same platform. They will be part of a felicitation function being organised in honour of their coach Ramakant Achrekar.
Tendulkar and Kambli will reach Nagpur today for the 11am-function. Achrekar is already in Nagpur. It is being organised by another student of Achrekar. Meanwhile, the Board of Control for Cricket in India rubbished the speculation that it wanted a question on the show deleted.
There are unconfirmed reports that the BCCI asked the people connected to the programme to edit out a question about “alleged discrimination” meted out to Kambli.
It is learnt that one of the questions was if Kambli thought he was ever discriminated by the BCCI because of his colour and caste. Kambli is from scheduled caste and he is believed to have answered “yes” to the question.
“We will not react to such questions. I categorically state that there was never such attempt by the Board,” said CAO Ratnakar Shetty. Kambli, of course, has denied making any such statements in the programme.
The show has been on air since Wednesday and the Kambli episode is likely to be shown on Monday and Tuesday nights. Sources in the channel say Kambli answered about 12 questions and won Rs 10 lakh before he was asked to withdraw by wife Andrea.
–Agencies