Ramesh Tendulkar, his father, supported Sachin when he was faced with the choice of complete devotion to cricket, or to re-build his academic career and pursue college. His father left the decision to Sachin, and backed him up when his son opted for cricket. This is significant due to the high emphasis of education and the strong influence of parents over children in Indian culture. His brother Ajit Tendulkar was also close and supportive of his intense efforts to master and excel at the game.
Tendulkar married Anjali Mehta, a gujarati doctor in 1998. It was a love marriage, despite his wife being a few years older than Sachin. They have two children, Arjun and Sara. Tendulkar remains a very devoted family man, and preserves the privacy and sanctity of his personal life despite the otherwise overwhelming media coverage on him.
The 2009 ICC World Twenty20 is a Twenty20 cricket tournament scheduled to take place in England in June of 2009. It will be the second World Twenty20 and will consist of 12 teams, contested by all Test-playing nations plus qualifiers (Ireland, Netherlands and Scotland)
The Champions Twenty20 League, formed with the official sanction of ICC will kick off in October 2008. Eight domestic teams from four nations will participate. Cricket Australia will partner the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) and Cricket South Africa (CSA). The champion team in the Champions Twenty20 league will get US $5 million, which is the highest ever prize money for a cricket event.
