Supresh Mugade: The Sachin clone in search of cricketing glory

Mumbai: Over the years, several fans of batting maestro Sachin Tendulkar has tried to copy his style and technique, but very few have managed to attain success.

Supresh Mugade, a 21-year-old from Mumbai, is however, made of sterner stuff.

Son of an avid Sachin fan, Mugade’s dedication in aping the batting legend and his quest to achieve cricketing success has turned him into an internet sensation.

The youngster has become viral on social media platform Instagram due to his reels in which he is trying to match Tendulkar shot for shot.  
However, the path to sporting glory is studded with struggles and sacrifice. 
Mugade had to sacrifice his own technique when he decided to mirror Sachin’s batting style from a young age. 

“I got into cricket when I was six. I used to initially play with my dad, not in an academy or practice. For the first four years, I only practised with my father. Near Venus Academy. My father was initially worried that I might get hit by the ball and similar things. But after one year of playing softball, I switched to the season ball,” Supresh told the media.

“My father has been a huge Sachin Tendulkar fan. He has never played any form of cricket. He has always been into cricket. The journey wasn’t easy – to bat like Sachin. At first, I had my own batting stance, but my father insisted that if you are playing cricket, bat like Sachin – ape him. The way he taps his bat, the way he smiles. His technique is the best. My dad taught me all that,” he added.

“It’s been a year since I began uploading videos on Instagram. I started very casually, but received a good response. Some people ask me why I ‘copy’ Sachin, but it’s not that. Each day, I am trying to learn and get better.”

At times, the youngster has had arguments with his father due to the latter’s insistence that must copy Sachin at the cost of losing his own individual style.

“I have arguments with my father, because I do make mistakes. When I don’t score runs, I wonder why I’m trying to copy Sachin. But even then, my father continues to insist. It has been a conscious effort. Only if I wear the same equipment would I look like him. It took two years for me to look a lot like him while batting. I try to do exactly what he did while batting,” he said.

Mugade has not watched Sachin play live, but videos from YouTube have convinced him that the Master Blaster was better than the best batters of the current generation.

“I have blurred memories of his final innings, but I never watched his batting much. When I was playing the Haris Shield Trophy, Sachin had come over to watch the match. However, we met him in a group, so we never got the chance to interact individually. It’s a dream to meet him and practice with him. Virat is my second-best batter. But when it comes to technique and records, I have always preferred Sachin. Virat is the best in the world at the moment, but I think Sachin played a lot more on challenging wickets and scored runs,” he said.

“I practice two hours a day. In fact, all my videos are personal. I personally book nets and do it. I wake up by 8 and start with ground training for an hour. Between 1 and 3, I train at the Payyade Cricket Academy, before I head to the gym by 7. My target is the Ranji Trophy. If I score runs at the club level, I will get a chance to represent Mumbai in the Ranji Trophy.”