When a peak Sachin Tendulkar was wielding the willow like a wand in the late ‘90s, a young cricket lover in Kashmir was grappling with the shock of losing both his arms in an accident at his father’s mill.

A quarter century on, their two vastly contrasting worlds have collided. The Mumbai maestro this week kept his date with his “real hero”, Amir Hussain, now a 34-year-old member of the Indian para cricket team who grips the bat between his neck and shoulder and bowls with his feet.

Sachin, who was on a whirlwind vacation in the Valley with his family sometime this week, hosted Amir and his wife and child at a hotel here, gifted him a bat and expressed his admiration for him.

“To Amir, the real hero. Keep inspiring!” the Master Blaster posted on social media on Saturday, sharing the video of their meeting.

“Nobody does what you have done. That is why I asked for your age at the time (when the accident happened). You said your age was eight,” Sachin tells Amir in the video.

“An eight-year-old boy faced such challenges, such trauma, mental trauma. To overcome that and become an inspiration for others is a very big achievement. Perhaps you don’t know what you have done…. It was a pleasure meeting you.”

It appears that Sachin became a fan of Amir after watching a video last month.

“34-year-old differently-abled cricketer from Waghama village of Bijbehara. Amir Hussain Lone currently captains Jammu & Kashmir’s Para cricket team. Amir has been playing cricket professionally since 2013 after a teacher discovered his cricketing talent and introduced him to Para cricket,” Sachin posted on social media in January.

“And Amir has made the impossible possible. I am so touched watching this! Shows how much love and dedication he has for the game. Hope I get to meet him one day and get a jersey with his name. Well done for inspiring millions who are passionate about playing the sport.”

The video Sachin shared on Saturday — it’s not clear when it was shot — shows Amir entering his hotel room and bowing. Sachin reciprocates with a hug. Amir thanks Sachin for his words of praise, saying they have inspired him.

“This has brought hope to my life. I hope I realise my dream,” he says.

Sachin later moves to a corner of the room, telling Amir not to look behind him. He picks up a bat and writes a few words of admiration for Amir, leaving the para cricketer teary-eyed.

Towards the end of the video, Amir tells Sachin that his wife and son are waiting outside and would love to meet him. Sachin receives them warmly and clicks pictures with them.

During the visit — whose dates aren’t known — Sachin and his family are understood to have travelled extensively across Kashmir and been welcomed warmly everywhere.

“The closest thing to heaven on earth is Kashmir,” the cricketer said on February 22 in a post accompanied by a video showing him looking out of an airplane window.

Multiple videos that Sachin has shared show him playing cricket with local people, visiting the Kaman Bridge on the Pakistan border, and enjoying the snow in Gulmarg.