There are fans who cheer from home and then there are those extremely passionate fans who cheer from the stands and one familiar name among them is the 35-year-old Sudhir Kumar Chaudhary, whom we’ve always seen painted in tri-colour and waving the national flag at every ground he goes to watch the game since 2003.
This time, Sushir, who’s also known as Sudhir Gautham, missed the first day of the Test match out of 57 Tests which is currently taking place at Mumbai’s iconic Wakhande stadium as his God has called him to join the promotional event in Bangalore which he couldn’t have denied at any cost and understandably so, having so much affection for the talismanic batsman.
“This is the first time I’ve ever missed a day’s play in Test cricket out of the 57 Tests that I’ve cheered for India in. Even on days when I was really sick, I made sure I never remained away from the ground when India were playing,” Sudhir said.
Former Indian legendary batsman Sachin Tendulkar, who’s the co-owner of a Bengaluru Blasters franchise for the Premier Badminton League, had requested Sudhir to join him for a promotional video shoot at Bangalore.
“Jab bhagwaan bulaye toh jaana padta hai (When God calls, you have to go),” added Chaudhary.
Before taking the flight to Bangalore, Sudhir was present during India’s training session a day before the start of the Wankhede Test.
Sudhir, the ardent fan of Sachin Tendulkar, returned on Friday to Wankhede after missing the all-important Day 1 action of the fourth Test.
Cricket is the game of gentlemen and fans breathe life to it and having a dedicated fan like Sudhir makes it even more memorable as he has been to Auckland, Wellington, Adelaide and add many other to the list without having his own source of income to support Team India.
Quite often we’ve come across the names like India, Tendulkar 10, written on Sudhir’s forehead and the chest while becoming the figure of attention in Indian cricket after being given free passes by Tendulkar himself.
Pedaling the cycle all the way from Bihar to Mumbai and painting himself has become his tradition and customary duty for the nation and one would feel proud to do so for the country he/she belongs to.
It’s special and equally heart-melting both for fans and players to receive huge standing ovation and overwhelming support.
It’s not about the stats all-time it’s also about the emotions which always run high. Sudhir should have been in the record books for what he had achieved, shouldn’t he?
Interestingly enough, it was for the first time a Mumbaikar could not make it to the final playing XI of a Test since India played its first ever Test in Mumbai back in 1933.
It would have definitely been a sad day and equally heart-breaking for him when batting maestro Tendulkar retired on the same venue after playing his career’s 200th Test against West Indies on November 16, 2013.
“Yes, but everything comes second to me after Sachin. I am what I am today because of him, and if he tells me to do something, I will do it without asking anything. Unke liye mein mar bhi sakta hu (I can die for him),” Sudhir said.
While shooting the video along with badminton star Saina Nehwal, Sudhir spent the whole day in the Silicon Valley.
The Mumbai Cricket Association said around 14,500 people turned up to the stadium on the second day as the figure was around 11,000 on Day 1.
Over the weekend, the association is expecting to lure a huge crowd as the match has been evenly poised between India and England.