Krunal Pandya, who recently made his debut for India, is making headlines for perhaps the gesture of the year. The all-rounder has left a blank cheque with Baroda Cricket Association secretary Sanjay Patel to help ailing former cricketer Jacob Martin.
Martin, who is battling for life after sustaining injuries to his lungs and liver in a road accident on December 28, has already received support from Baroda Cricket Association and former Indian captain Sourav Ganguly.
"Sir, please fill up whatever is needed, but nothing less than Rs 1 lakh," Krunal told Patel, as quoted by The Telegraph.
"Martin's family was in a dilemma, whether to appeal for help or not. Today, the situation is such that they don't have to ask, members from the fraternity are asking about the amount to transfer," Patel informed.
Ravi Shastri, Irfan Pathan and Zaheer Khan step forward
Indian head coach Ravi Shastri, who is currently in New Zealand, has also offered to help as have many current and former Baroda players in Zaheer Khan, Irfan Pathan, Yusuf Pathan and Munaf Patel.
"It's overwhelming that Zaheer Khan, Yusuf and Irfan Pathan, Munaf Patel, Sourav and Ravi, among others, have come forward to extend a helping hand in this time of distress for Martin's family," Patel added.
Jacob Martin was a prolific name in the Indian domestic circuit and went on play 10 ODI games for the country. He was identified by Sourav Ganguly and played five games under his leadership and then five under Sachin Tendulkar.
"It took just a text message and a phone call to Zaheer [Khan], Ravi [Shastri], the Pathan brothers (Irfan and Yusuf), the Pandya brothers (Krunal and Hardik), Ashish (Nehra) and Munaf [Patel]," Sanjay informed The Hindu on Monday.
"All of them have voluntarily come forward to help the family. Sourav [Ganguly] called me after reading about it in a newspaper and has been of great support. In fact, we have got support from some genuine fans from Mumbai who have offered to help," he added.
