Sydney: Former India captain and batting legend Sachin Tendulkar has sued an Australian bat manufacturer for failing to pay him US dollars 2 million in royalties, local media reported on Friday (June 14). Earlier, MS Dhoni too was a non-payment victim of the same company.

"Indian cricket icon Sachin Tendulkar is suing Australian batmaker Spartan Sports after it allegedly failed to pay him almost (Australian) $3 million under an exclusive licensing agreement to use his name and image on sporting goods," The Sydney Morning Herald said in a report.

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"In a case filed in the Federal Circuit Court, Mr Tendulkar alleges the Sydney-based company Spartan Sports International – which has since been renamed – agreed in July 2016 to pay him a minimum of $US1 million a year to use his image and promotional services to sell 'Sachin by Spartan' products. The imagery included a distinctive silhouette logo on clothing and bats," it added.

Tendulkar's lawyers claimed in court that Spartan Sports had failed to make any payment so far. As per reports, Tendulkar, the highest run scorer in both Tests and ODIs, had attended the company's promotional events.

On Twitter, there was an account of @SachinbySpartan but now it is deactivated after Tendulkar filed the civil lawsuit. The company's website has pictures of MS Dhoni, Chris Gayle, Michael Clarke, Kevin Pietersen, David Warner, Jonny Bairstow claiming to be Spartan ambassadors.

In the ongoing World Cup 2019 in England and Wales, Australian opener Warner is using Spartan bat. Recently, he scored a century with the same, against Pakistan and also won the Man-of-the-match award.

When Warner’s manager was contacted by The Sydney Morning Herald, he said if the contract is not honoured they would do the same as Tendulkar.

“Warner has got a contract with them and if they don’t pay, we’d probably do the same thing (as Tendulkar),” James Erskine told the newspaper. “If people don’t pay you under a contract, you are free to sue them for the money you think you have been owed.”

“We have a clause in that contract which states that if they don’t pay we can terminate the contract. At the moment David Warner has no problem with Spartan and I don’t think Spartan have any problem with David Warner," he added.