Tendulkar Digs Deep for India's Coronavirus Fight

Batting great Sachin Tendulkar has donated 5 million rupees ($67,000) to India's battle against coronavirus outbreak, as confirmed by a source close to the former cricketer.

Tendulkar, who also played in the February bushfire charity game in Australia, each contributed 2.5 million rupees to his Maharashtra state government and to the relief fund of the Prime Minister, the source told Reuters.

The 46-year-old, with over 34,000 runs and 100 centuries, is the world's top run-scorer in Tests and One-day Internationals. His service continued for 24 years and finished in 2013.

In India, 724 infections were confirmed, of which 17 died. According to a report by Reuters, more than 24,000 have died from the infection worldwide.

India has announced a lockdown of 21 days until April 14 to fight the virus, which emerged in China late last year and has brought sporting events around the world to a halt.

The fate of the popular Indian Premier League Twenty20 tournament, which was scheduled to being at the end of the month, remains unclear. It has already been postponed until April 15 at the earliest.

Though India's cricket board (BCCI), the world's wealthiest cricket body, is yet to declare any contributions to battle the disease, its state divisions have progressed to assist national and regional governments.

The Mumbai Cricket Association gave 5 million rupees, the Saurashtra Cricket Association donated 4.2 million while the Cricket Association of Bengal contributed 2.5 million.

"Mumbai Cricket Association will support the Govt. of Maharashtra in any way possible in its fight against this pandemic," the association said.

BCCI chief and former captain Sourav Ganguly has promised to provide free rice worth 5 million rupees to those in need.

A number of Indian cricketers, including national team captain Virat Kohli, have also reached out to their followers on social media, urging them to not leave their homes for three weeks as mandated by the country's government.

Kohli and actress wife Anushka Sharma have a combined 142 million followers on Twitter and Instagram.

"These are testing times and we need to wake up to the seriousness of this situation," Kohli said in a video message.

"Please let us all follow what's been told to us and stand united, please. It's a plea to everyone. Stay at home and save your family from coronavirus."

Athletes from other backgrounds have made financial donations, while others promised their wages to provide relief initiatives for the country.

Source: Reuters