Dhoni's WC bat fetches Rs 72 lakh

Charity cause

Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s bat, with which he made 91 runs in the finals and guided India to its second World Cup, went for a whopping Rs 72.57 lakh (£100,000) in an auction held for his charitable foundation.

At the auction which raised Rs 3.26 crore (£450,000), Sacha Jafri’s Original Artwork also went under the hammer. Jafri, one of the most celebrated artists of the world, was commissioned to create the official painting to commemorate Dhoni’s historic World Cup winning team as well as the unprecedented achievements of “arguably the greatest batsman of all time” — Sachin Tendulkar.

The painting, which includes hand-prints and signatures from some of the games’ greatest players including the likes of Ricky Ponting, Andrew Flintoff, Allan Border and Lasith Malinga, went for Rs 1.81 crore (£250,000s).

Flourishing cricket
Dhoni said the charity ‘Winning Ways Today for Tomorrow’,  was launched in India in March last year and has helped cricket flourish in areas where children hail from poor socio-economic backgrounds.

“The charity will look to continue its dedication to improving children’s accessibility to cricket by building a sports academy where children will be able to develop their talents across a whole range of disciplines,” he said. Citing his own example, Dhoni said he was 18 when in 1999-2000, he was approached by a Public Sector Undertaking and provided with three new cricket balls, bat and pad.

“That helped me groom. In just four years, there was change in me because of that,” he said. He said the new sports academy in Ranchi for which the Jharkhand Government has allocated a plot of land, will enable children of all backgrounds to hone their skills.

“There are also plans for a housing complex to be built next to the academy which would serve as accommodation for students and staff working at the academy,” he added.