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Cricketers who have donated to help India fight the coronavirus pandemic

By Prasen Moudgal
Modified Apr 02, 2020 14:00 IST
Sourav Ganguly (L) and Sachin Tendulkar [PC: NDTVSports]
Sourav Ganguly (L) and Sachin Tendulkar [PC: NDTVSports]

It has been close to two weeks since the coronavirus applied a complete halt on cricketing action across the world. With the health concerns posed by the virus, big events such as the Indian Premier League, England's 2020 County Championship have all been pushed to later dates.

Cricketers around the world have gone into self-isolation while taking to social media to spread the importance of staying indoors and maintaining hygiene. Virat Kohli, MS Dhoni, Sachin Tendulkar among other star Indian cricketers have urged fans to stay safe through videos on their social media accounts.

The number of cases tallied in India has gone over 900, with the country currently observing a 21-day lockdown to fight the widespread of the virus.

Amidst these testing times, quite a few cricketers and cricket associations have generously donated to help with the COVID-19 relief efforts. The Cricket Association of Bengal, Hyderabad Cricket Association and Assam Cricket Association have also offered their premises for the government to use as temporary quarantine centres.

In this article, we will have a look at the list of cricketers who have graciously donated to the cause, in addition to a few associations who have also contributed to the relief efforts.

#1 Sachin Tendulkar (₹50 lakh)

Sachin Tendulkar
Sachin Tendulkar

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The Master Blaster donated ₹25 lakh each to the Chief Minister's Relief Fund and Prime Minister's Relief Fund. Tendulkar has been actively involved in charity activities, having also donated to the Uttarakhand floods relief fund and most recently the Australian Red Cross.

#2 Sourav Ganguly (Rice worth ₹50 lakh)

Page 4 - 5 instances when Sourav Ganguly owned the commentary box

BCCI President, Sourav Ganguly also did his bit by donating rice worth ₹50 lakh for the needy during the 21-day lockdown. Cricket Association of Bengal in a statement mentioned that the Former India captain will be distributing the rice with the help of rice brand Lal Baba Rice.

#3 Irfan Pathan and Yusuf Pathan (4,000 face masks)

Irfan Pathan took to Twitter on 23rd March to announce that he and his brother, Yusuf Pathan were donating 4,000 face masks to the health department under the banner Mehmood Khan Pathan Charitable Trust, an organisation run by their father.

#4 Shikhar Dhawan

Indian cricket team opener, Shikhar Dhawan in a video on Twitter urged the public to contribute to the PM's Relief Fund and their Chief Minister's Relief Fund and help out those in need. Dhawan requested fans to join hands and fight the battle against the Corona virus.

#5 Gautam Gambhir (₹50 lakh)

Former Indian opening batsman Gautam Gambhir pledged to contribute ₹50 lakh from his MP LAD fund to facilitate the quick treatment and relief efforts in the government's push to combat the spread of the coronavirus.

On March 28, Gambhir also announced on Twitter that he was contributing ₹1 Crore from his MP LAD fund apart from also donating one month's worth of his salary towards the Central Relief Fund.

#6 Laxmi Ratan Shukla (3 months worth of salary)

Bengal all-rounder Laxmi Ratan Shukla, who represented India in the ODI format put out a video on Twitter in which he has urged the public to contribute in whichever way they can. The 38-year-old is understood to have contributed three months of his salary to the Chief Minister's Relief Fund.

#7 Ajinkya Rahane (₹10 lakh)

The ace Indian batsman is understood to have donated ₹10 lakh to the Chief Minister's Relief Fund, continuining his active involvement in spreading the message of needing to assist the government's efforts to combat the virus.

#8 Suresh Raina (₹52 lakh)

Flamboyant left-hand batsman Suresh Raina also pledged to donate a sum of ₹52 lakh split as ₹31 lakh to the PM CARES fund and ₹21 lakh to the Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister's Relief Fund.

Raina has featured in 18 Tests, 226 ODIs and 78 T20Is for India. He will next been seen in action for the Chennai Super Kings as part of IPL 2020.

#9 Richa Ghosh (₹1 lakh)

Richa Ghosh
Richa Ghosh

Teenage batting sensation Richa Ghosh, who represented India at the Women's T20 World Cup donated ₹1 lakh to the Bengal Chief Minister's Relief Fund. Richa played in the final of the tournament when she came on as a concussion substitute in place of Taniya Bhatia.

#10 Mithali Raj (₹10 lakh)

Indian women's ODI team captain Mithali Raj announced on Twitter that she was donating ₹5 lakh each to the PM CARES Fund and the Telangana Chief Minister's Relief Fund. Mithali, who announced her retirement from T20Is in 2019 will lead the Indian team in the ODI World Cup next year.

#11 Poonam Yadav (₹2 lakh)

Indian women's team leg-spinner Poonam Yadav tweeted about her contribution to the relief efforts. Poonam, who picked up 10 wickets from five matches is understood to have donated a sum of ₹2 lakh towards the PM Relief Fund and the Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister's Fund.

#12 Deepti Sharma (₹1.5 lakh)

Deepti Sharma
Deepti Sharma

Indian women's cricket team all-rounder, Deepti Sharma donated ₹1.5 lakh to aid the COVID-19 relief efforts. Deepti has donated ₹50,000 to the PM CARES Fund while also contributing ₹50,000 for the UP Chief Minister's Distress Fund and West Bengal State Emergency Fund respectively.

Special mention of foreign players who have donated

#1 Shahid Afridi

Pakistan star all-rounder Shahid Afridi has been doing his bit to help those in need through the Shahid Afridi Foundation. For the last week, Afridi has been actively distributing ration, essentials like soap, sanitizers to ensure the safety and hygiene of his countrymen.

List of associations that have donated to the COVID-19 relief efforts

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB), Saurashtra Cricket Association (SCA), Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) and Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) have made generous donations to hasten the recovery process.

#1 Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI)

The BCCI, on March 28th announced that they will be contributing a massive sum of ₹51 Crores to the Prime Minister's Relief in Emergency Situations Fund.

#2 Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB)

It has come to light that the CAB contributed a sum of ₹25 lakh to the West Bengal Emergency Relief Fund, while CAB president Avishek Dalmiya himself made a personal contribution of ₹5 lakh.

#3 Saurashtra Cricket Association (SCA)

The SCA is understood to have donated ₹21 lakh each to the Chief Minister of Gujarat's Relief Fund and the Prime Minister's Relief Fund.

#4 Maharashtra Cricket Association (MCA)

The Maharashtra Cricket Association pledged to contribute ₹50 lakh to the Chief Minister's Relief Fund to further facilitate the government's relief efforts.

#5 Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB)

The PCB, a few days ago confirmed that Pakistan's centrally contracted players will combine to donate ₹5 million to help the government's efforts to curb the spread of the coronavirus.

#6 Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB)

The Bangladesh Cricket Board has made an effort to collect an amount totalling to approximately 25 lakh Bangladesh Takas, with 27 cricketers donating half of their monthly salaries for the cause.

#7 Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA)

The KSCA have pledged to donate ₹1 Crore split as ₹50 lakh to the Chief Minister's Relief Fund and ₹50 lakh to the Prime Minister's Relief Fund.

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