When Wankhede stood spellbound as 'God' met 'Messiah'

The stands of Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai have long echoed with the familiar chants of "Sachin… Sachin", but on Sunday, with the cricketing great himself watching on, the iconic venue roared for another global icon as cries of "Messi… Messi" rang out. In a rare moment, the Wankhede played host to the meeting of the gods of cricket and football.

Mumbai was Messi's third stop of his four-city GOAT India Tour, and the Argentine spent about an hour at the historic venue, interacting with young footballers, Tendulkar, Indian football captain Sunil Chhetri and several celebrities from the entertainment industry.

The Argentina and Barcelona legend, accompanied by his Inter Miami teammates Luis Suarez and Rodrigo De Paul, stepped onto the field shortly after Tendulkar arrived at around 5.45 pm, triggering deafening cheers from the packed stands. Even the cricketing great may have been taken aback by the volume of the roars reserved for Messi.

However, the iconic "Sachin… Sachin" chants returned at full throttle later in the evening when the batting legend was invited to join Messi on stage, restoring the familiar soundtrack of the Wankhede.

"I have spent some incredible moments here. A number of dreams have seen the finish line on this very venue. And without your support, we would never have seen those golden moments on this ground in 2011 (cricket World Cup)," Tendulkar said, while addressing the crowd.

"And today, having all three of them here is indeed a golden moment for Mumbai, Mumbaikars and India. When it comes to Leo, what does one talk about him? He has achieved everything. We really admire his dedication, determination, commitment," he added.

Before the two superstars shared the stage, Messi enjoyed a never-to-be-forgotten outing at the Wankhede which was packed to the brim by his, and of course, Barca fans.

The trio first interacted with members of the teams that played an exhibition match, and proceeded to enthral the crowds across the stands and pavilions, some of which are named after Indian cricket legends Sunil Gavaskar, Tendulkar, Dilip Vengsarkar and Vijay Merchant.

The exhibition match- a 7vs7 game- saw current Indian football team members taking part, like Rahul Bheke, Konsham Chinglensana, Indian women's football star Bala Devi, besides Chhetri.

Messi also spent time interacting with former India captain Sunil Chhetri and presented him with his Argentina jersey, a gesture he also extended to Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis. The football great also engaged with players from the Mitra Stars and India Stars, the two teams that featured in the exhibition match held at the venue.

Chhetri, who recently retired from international football after scoring 94 goals for India, received a rousing reception from the crowd, with chants of "Chhetri… Chhetri" ringing out during the exhibition match and other activities he was involved in.

During the event, Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis announced the launch of 'Project Maha-Deva', an initiative aimed at identifying and nurturing young football talent across the state.

On Monday, Messi will meet the Chief Justice of India and the Army chief at a member of Parliament's house after his visit to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's official residence during his Delhi leg of the India tour.