New Delhi, July 10 -- : Sunil Gavaskar was the person I looked up to and wanted to emulate, said Sachin Tendulkar as he extended birthday wishes to the former cricketer.

Gavaskar turned 71 on Friday.

"I got to meet my idol Gavaskar Sir for the first time in 1987. As a 13 year old, I couldn't believe my luck that I was meeting the person I looked up to & wanted to emulate. What a day that was. Wishing you a very happy 71st birthday Sir. Have a healthy & safe year ahead," Tendulkar tweeted.

Gavaskar, better known as 'Sunny' and 'Little Master', was a member of the 1983 World Cup-winning team.

Gavaskar played 125 Test matches for India and amassed 10,122 runs including his highest score of 236 not out. In 108 ODIs he played for India, he s...