Trump mangles name of India’s most famous ever cricketer: ‘Soochin Tendulkar’
President addresses huge crowd in country’s largest cricket stadium
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Donald Trump’s first official visit to India has kicked off with the US president struggling to pronounce the names of some of India’s most revered sports stars.
During a public rally in Gujarat with Indian prime minister Narendra Modi at the Motera stadium – the world’s largest cricket venue – Mr Trump stumbled over the names of batsman Sachin Tendulkar, and Indian national team captain Virat Kohli.
“This is the country where your people cheer on some of the world’s greatest cricket players, from Soo-chin Tendul-kerr to Virot Kohl-ee,” Mr Trump told the audience.
Despite Mr Trump’s lack of pronunciation preparation, the mention of the cricketers prompted applause from the 100,000 people in the stadium.
On Twitter, reaction was mixed as numerous people were delighted the US president had singled out the cricketers for a special mention, however Mr Trump’s unique pronunciation did not escape critique.
“Donald Trump just called Sachin Tendulkar ‘Soo Chin tendulkar’ LMAO,” said Darpit Kunder.
“What an embarrassment,” wrote another person in reaction to the footage.
Others noted other hiccups in the US president’s pronunciation of names.
During the meeting, Mr Modi also struggled with pronunciation, welcoming the US president "Doland Trump", generating amusement among Indians.
Mr Trump’s mention of Tendulkar comes 10 years to the day since the cricketer became the first to score a double century in one day international cricket.
Mr Trump’s 36-hour visit to India aims to deepen ties with India, but a long-awaited trade deal between the two countries is not expected to be reached yet.
Subscribe to Independent Premium to bookmark this article
Want to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? Start your Independent Premium subscription today.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments