Watch: Sunil Gavaskar gets emotional presenting Lifetime Achievement Award to his hero Nari Contractor

Indian Cricket legend Sunil Gavaskar became emotional when asked to honor Nari Contractor with a lifetime achievement award. In a rare sighting, Gavaskar was in tears as he idealized Contractor as his childhood hero.

Gavaskar explained how important Nari Contractor has been to him throughout the journey in the sports sector. The 76-year-old recalled a moment when he used to be an aspirant, listening to a commentary when Contractor was batting against England.

Sunil Gavaskar recalls Nari Contractor’s inspiring comeback

Recalling the spectrum from the early days, Gavaskar mentioned that, in that match, Nari Contractor batted with a broken rib for another two to three hours. The moment, the commentary, and the heart-out batting of Nari Contractor became a turning point in his career forever.

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“I mean, for me, it is an incredible honor to be able to, I'm getting emotional here, to be able to present this award, the Lifetime Achievement Award to Nari Contractor. We learned so much from him. Firstly, as an opening bat, you need courage”, Sunil Gavaskar said from the stage.

Why Nari Contractor remains a legendary figure in Indian cricket

“I remember listening to the commentary, 1959 of the Lord's Test Match, and very early in his innings, he got hit in the chest by a ball from Brian Statham that got up, broke a rib, and he carried on. He carried on, batted for another two to three hours, and finally got out at 81. But for somebody who was just looking at playing a little bit of gully cricket, street cricket, it was an inspiration”, he further added.

From the knock of Nari Contractor, who is now 92, Gavaskar came to learn that without pain, he would not become a proper batter. Even a blow on the head could not stop the legend, Gavaskar recalled.

“It was that if you want to be a batter, you've got to be prepared to take the pain. And if you've got to be a batter for your country, you should be able to put your life on the line. I mean, that was it. So, when he got hit on the head, after that, he also made a comeback. He made a comeback to the, to first class cricket and got hundreds. But clearly at that stage, there were no helmets”, Sunil Gavaskar mentioned.

It was an emotional moment for the cricket fans as well. Former India cricketer Irfan Pathan was there among the attendees. The camera captured some numb eyes of some of the fans as well. 

"Nari Contractor - He was hit on the head by Charlie Griffith", one of the comments in the social media post reads. "One legend talks about legendary heroics of another legend... So inspiring, humble, and kind of cute", another cricket fan wrote in the comment section. 

Watch the video here;

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 Fans react to the emotional moment