Upcoming players need financial help: Dhanraj Pillay

Dhanraj Pillay speaks his mind and follows his heart. Recently, the hockey great declared, on the spur of the moment, a collective cash reward of Rs 1,25,000 for six young sportspersons being felicitated at a function in Mumbai. The recipients of the honour were Raynier Fernandes (football), Sarvesh Jadhav (cricket), Sakshi Rahate (kabaddi), Harshil Dani (badminton), Janhavi More (carrom board) and Shubham Amre (table tennis).

“As a sportsman, I know the expenses involved for upcoming players,“ Pillay said. “Once you are famous, everyone wants to do things for you, but it is when you are a junior that you really need help.“

The occasion was the launch of a new sports portal with a thrust on covering grassroots sports. Dwarkanath Sanzgiri, the cricket compere who hosted the function, was among those who lauded Pillay for his gesture.

With characteristic wit, he said, “Had this been a cricketer, he'd have put his hand in a second person's pocket and awarded it to a third person.“.