At the time he was fired, he was earning Rs 41,000 for his dual role of a groundsman and coach. The 61-year-old has said that he drew his last salary from Anushktinagar Sports Management Committee (ASMC) in December and was kept in the dark for months before being shown the exit door. Ashok Aswalkar said he was 'humiliated' after being called to meet ASMC officials and then being asked to leave via a text message after waiting for three hours. "I joined the BARC [Bhabha Atomic Research Centre] ground in 1989-90 and was assisting Jagannath Phanse as a groundsman and coach. I started at a monthly salary of R3,000 and when they [ASMC] discontinued my services in December 2023, I was getting R26,000 per month for the groundsman job and R15,000 for coaching from a coaching agency," Aswalkar told Mid-day. "I went to attend my nephew's wedding in Malvan with prior intimation. They [ASMC] asked me to meet them on my return on December 31. I did so, but no one spoke to me during my three-hour visit. I was then told via a message to return home and I would be called again. This was humiliating. When I was told to visit the place a week later, no one met me again," said Aswalkar. "After one month I got a message at my home that few [ASMC] members wanted to meet me at the ground. I met and spoke with Mr [Ramakant] Sahu and two other committee members there. They asked me questions and listened carefully to what I said. The committee members said they will get in touch with me soon, but till date, no one has communicated with me. The last salary I drew was ₹26,911 in December 2023." 'Did not tell family about sacking, but told Surya who was responsible' India's newly-appointed T20I captain Suryakumar Yadav has often acknowledge the contribution of his childhood coach in his career. He also featured with him in a TV commercial glorifying the role of Ashok Aswalkar in making him a star. Suryakumar Yadav was unimpressed after the turn of events and stopped entertaining the person responsible for the firing of his coach from his job. "I didn't even tell my family members that I had lost my job. I just messaged Surya to say that I lost my job and told him who was responsible for this damage. Surya in response stopped entertaining that particular person," Aswalkar said. The ASMC and its head are now eager to call back Aswalkar and give him a full-time job of a curator-cum-coach. Ramakant Sahu, the head of ASMC, mentioned that what happened with Aswalkar was due to miscommunication and misunderstanding. However, the veteran coach is unlikely to go back, and is set to embark on a new journey with the help of his superstar disciple Suryakumar Yadav. "I am coaching youngsters in an indoor turf facility at Chembur now. I spoke with Surya about starting a cricket academy and he gave me a positive reply. We both want to provide coaching to needy youngsters. Money was never a priority for us, and it will not be in the future," Aswalkar said while talking about his future plan.