Sachin Tendulkar and Lionel Messi are regarded as legends of their respective sports. The whole world has been in awe of both the starts for their on-field as well as off-field moments. Indian international Suresh Raina, who was a part of World Cup-winning squad in 2011, has revealed that he is a huge fan of Barcelona talisman Lionel Messi.
Raina, who heaped praise on the Argentinian footballer, compared him with Indian legend Sachin Tendulkar. Raina pointed out similarities between both the stalwarts. While Tendulkar is regarded as one of the greatest cricketers of all time, Messi is often hailed as one of the best to have graced football.
In a live chat with Khaleej Times on Facebook, Raina explained what he feels is similar between Messi and Sachin and said both superstars have been generous to people around them. Both the legends have been humble during the course of their careers despite achieving the immense amount of success.
‘I am a big fan of Messi’: Suresh Raina
“I am a big fan of Messi. He is so down to earth, Both Sachin and Messi are very good when it comes to taking care of people around them because in sports you need to be really humble,” said Raina.
“You may be the number one player in the world, but your legacy is very important, You need to show gratitude to everyone,” he added.
Raina also revealed how Sachin took care of the entire Indian team during their title-winning World Cup campaign in 2011. The left-hander revealed that Tendulkar was like the team’s second coach for the side during the marquee event. The Indian side scripted history in the final of 2011 World Cup by defeating Sri Lanka in the final and lifting the trophy after 28 long years.
“With Sachin, it’s always about his calmness. It was because of Sachin that we won the World Cup. He was the guy who made everyone in the team believe that we can do that, He was like the second coach in the team,” expressed Raina.
