MADRAS, India, 6 July 2003 — Batting greats Steve Waugh, Sachin Tendulkar and Brian Lara will clash against each other here today — not on a cricket field, but on a go-karting track.
Joining them on the track at Navalur on the outskirts of the sourthern city will be former Australian paceman Dennis Lillee, who has long been associated with a pace bowling project promoted by tire giant Madras Rubber Factory (MRF).
“It’ll be a historic and memorable day for two totally unrelated sports — cricket and karting — as four great players will for once set cricket aside and compete in an eight-lap karting race,” said MRF chairman K.M. Mammen.
Australian Test captain Waugh, India’s Tendulkar and West Indies skipper Lara endorse the MRF logo on their cricket bats.
Go-karting, a poor cousin of Formula One, is run on 800 cc engines and has become a craze across India.
Tendulkar said he had been a Formula One racing fan since his childhood and his favorite was German Michael Schumacher.
“I’ve always been interested in cars. I’m a keen follower of Formula One racing. I also do some karting when I’ve time,” said Tendulkar, who has amassed 8,811 runs in 105 Tests. The racing is a new experience for both Lara and Waugh.
