Pragyan Ojha received THIS special gift for dismissing Sachin Tendulkar in IPL; Read here

Pragyan Ojha has revealed getting a special gift after taking the prized wicket of Sachin Tendulkar in IPL 2009 during a league match between Mumbai Indians and the eventual champions the now-defunct Deccan Chargers. Ojha himself had a successful season as he finished with 18 wickets. He was the second-highest wicket-taker for the Chargers and the fourth-highest in the tournament.

'A special gift': Pragyan Ojha

“"The night before our game against MI, our owner came to me during the team dinner and said.... He is from Hyderabad. One of the team owners in our local leagues in the Hyderabad Cricket Association system. He knows me right from my childhood", said Ojha during his interview with Wisden.

"He walked up to me and said ‘Pragyan, if you get Sachin Tendulkar's wicket, then definitely I will have a special gift for you. He knew exactly that I used to love watches. I told him, ‘Sir, If I get his wicket, I need a watch.' It so happened, the next day, I got Sachin paaji’s wicket and he gifted me a watch,” the veteran left-arm spinner added. And just a mention of those words acted as an encouragement for Ojha. 

Ojha had announced his retirement from all forms of cricket earlier this year on his official Twitter handle. He has represented India at the highest level in 24 Tests and 18 One Day Internationals. Apart from DC, the Hyderabadi cricketer had also represented the Mumbai Indians in the Indian Premier League. Coincidentally Pragyan had also received his Test cap from Tendulkar himself. The senior bowler was not considered in red-ball cricket after 2013.