'This is a start of a beautiful journey...'

Arjun Tendulkar made his Indian Premier League (IPL) debut for Mumbai Indian (MI) against Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) at Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on Sunday.

Arjun, son of legendary cricketer Sachin Tendulkar, was given his MI cap by captain Rohit Sharma.

They become the first father-son pair to play in the IPL.

In his maiden IPL outing, the 23-year-old Arjun bowled 2 overs and gave 17 runs.  

"It was a great moment. A special one to play for the team that I supported since 2008 and it was nice to get the cap from captain of MI and Indian team," Arjun told IPLT20.com.

For the legendary father, it was a moment of pride.

"Arjun, today you have taken another important step in your journey as a cricketer. As your father, someone who loves you and is passionate about the game, I know you will continue to give the game the respect it deserves and the game will love you back. You have worked very hard to reach here, and I am sure you will continue to do so. This is the start of a beautiful journey. All the best," proud dad Sachin conveyed his joy in a tweet on Sunday.

"This was a new experience for me because till now I have not actually gone and watched him play. I wanted him to have the freedom to go out and express himself, and do whatever he wanted to," Tendulkar said after MI's seven-wicket win against KKR on Sunday.

The bowling all-rounder, who represented Mumbai before moving to Goa last summer for more opportunities, was bought by MI for 30 lakhs in the 2022 IPL auction. He was part of the squad but was not handed a debut. He was retained ahead of 2023 mini-auction before finally making a well-earned debut for the five-time champions.

Arjun had represented Mumbai in only two T20 matches before making his move to Goa count.

Arjun scored a century on his Ranji Trophy debut for Goa against Rajasthan in December last year.

During the 2022 Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy he picked 10 wickets in seven games at an economy of 5.69. Later, in the Vijay Hazare Trophy, he took seven wickets in eight matches at an economy rate of 4.98 to finish as Goa's leading wicket-taker in the competition.

In nine T20s, Arjun has scored 20 runs in five innings with best score of 15. He has 12 wickets in the format at an average of 16.50 and an economy rate of 6.60. His best bowling figures are 4/10 in the T20.

Playing seven first-class matches, Arjun has scored 223 runs in nine innings at an average of 24.77 with a century. He has also taken 12 wickets in the format at an average of 45.58 and an economy rate of 3.42. His best bowling figures in an innings are 3/104.

In seven List-A matches, he has scored 25 runs in three innings, with best score of 14*. Arjun also has eight wickets in the format at an average of 32.37 and an economy rate of 4.98. His best bowling figures in the format are 2/32.

Talking of his son making a debut for the same franchise as his, Sachin said: "Different feeling because 2008 was first season for me and 16 years down the line, he plays for the same team, not bad," he concluded.

• IPL 2023