Leander Paes and Bollywood stars play football for a cause in Singapore

Leander Paes

The rival team of the All Stars Football Club (ASFC) will have to up their socks to battle the newly introduced sportsperson in the league. Fresh out of his success at the Davis Cup, tennis ace Leander Paes is set to join Bollywood actors Abhishek Bachchan, Ranbir Kapoor, Arjun Kapoor and Dino Morea, among others, at the club's charity match in Singapore's Jalan Besar football stadium on April 22.

Arjun Kapoor, Bunty Walia and Ranbir Kapoor at the photo shoot

Bunty Walia of the organising team says, "Leander Paes joined the boys for their latest photoshoot yesterday. He will fly with the team to play the game. This is the first time that Leander will play with us. He is a sports person, and has always shown interest in the game. He had a free window, and when I spoke to him, he asked me if his jersey was available. Leander has practised with us in the past and is superb at the sport."

The event aims to raise funds for marginalised children and is the brainchild of Magic Bus Foundation, AFSC and crowd-funding platform ImpactGuru.com. It aims to raise Rs 60 lakh towards Magic Bus' programmes through the match. There will also be an opportunity for fans of the actors to contribute and join their stars. One of the 36 lucky donors will get a chance to meet one of their favourite actors from the team.

Talking about his association, Bachchan says, "I have met some of the children and know what a massive change the organisation has made in their lives." Glad to do his bit for the cause, Kapoor says, "I am excited for the match, but I'm more thrilled to reach the goal of this fundraiser."

Also read: Tennis to cricket! Leander Paes takes on batsman's role in Bandra

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