When Sachin Tendulkar and Shane Warne walk the streets of New York, they create an odd phenomenon. About 95 percent of pedestrians pass them by without a second look. The other 5 percent go absolutely bonkers.
Tendulkar and Warne are two of the world’s best cricket players, which means little to the bulk of Americans. But to those with roots in India, Australia or other cricket-loving lands, spotting them on the street is like a serendipitous encounter with Michael Jordan, Pope Francis and Taylor Swift.
“Wherever Sachin goes, you’ve got a billion people who love him,” said Warne, who is in the United States with Tendulkar for three exhibition matches, beginning Saturday at Citi Field.